Black Hole
by SoraIsMyHomeboy
Summary: The death of a star wreaks destruction and chaos until nothing but nothingness is left. A nothingness that destroys all. A nothingness that not even light can escape... Sequel to Supernova. T for violence and mild language.
1. Prologue

**NOTE: THIS IS THE THIRD PART IN A TRILOGY. IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE FIRST TWO PARTS, READ NO FURTHER, LEST YOU FACE SHOCKING SPOILERS AND UTTER CONFUSION.**

Well, hello again everyone! Glad to see you're reading this :D Before I get right to the story, we'll have a quick recap of what was happening at the end of Supernova because let's face it: It's been awhile. XD (If you remember everything, feel free to skip ahead.)

An enormous war between light and darkness took place as light tried to sweep over the worlds and wipe out all darkness, causing an imbalance that would destroy the entire universe. Katie and company destroyed all the Solstices, the creautres of light that were fighting off the Heartless, but the imbalance still caused a universe-wide implosion. To stop it before everything was lost, Roxas unlocked his own heart, using his own light and darkness to create a seperation between the light and dark of the universe. He left with a promise to find a way back. Katie tried to stop him but the powerful explosion that ensued left all of us uncertain what happened or if anyone survived...

* * *

_Where…am I?_

_ I feel…like I've been sleeping…forever…_

_ I don't remember anything…_

_ Except…_

I wake up to empty space. I don't know where I am. The air is black and white at the same time. I stand up, even though there's no ground. Everything is strange and alien. The horizon seems to fade in and out of existence. Maybe it isn't really there at all. I stand. I stare blankly at everything. It's so monotonous. I'm so numb. I fit in well.

I see something. It's off in the distance. I think. The fog obscures its identity, but it's a figure. It comes closer. I wait. The foggy air gives way. The mysterious person is a tall man with long, silver hair. He is holding out a black cloak. He's wearing one that looks just like it.

"Put it on."

I mechanically obey. I take the coat from him and stare at it.

"Then follow me." He turns and walks away.

I am still for a moment. My body automatically starts to work. I slip my arms through the leather sleeves of the cloak. I reach down and zip the coat up. Then I walk. I'm heading in the direction that the man went. There is a gaping black hole in front of me. My body doesn't react to it. It only walks forward. The dark flames engulf me. I disappear.

* * *

I fade in and out of consciousness. I can only make out blurry images and the sound of rain before I fall back into the dark. One time, I awake to someone standing beside me. All I see is their black shoes in front of my face and a black jacket that falls next to me.

"Put this on," the voice tells me. I try to moan out a question, but just like that, they're gone and I pass out.

I blink awake again and my vision hones in on my surroundings this time. One by one, each of my senses sharpens to their usual strength and I analyze the situation. I'm lying on a dark, wet road. The only sound I can make out is the low rumble of a storm and water hitting ground. I give a small groan as I push myself to a kneeling position and every muscle in my body gives a huge, simultaneous ache. My clothes are soaked beyond any hope of drying and the rain doesn't show any sign of letting up.

My gaze falls upon the cloak that was left by my side while I was unconscious. I reach over and pick it up to find that it's surprisingly waterproof. The droplets of rain from the sky simply run along its surface and fall to the ground. It would be nice to put it on and get out of the stormy weather for awhile. But who had left it there? Could I trust them? Well, how much harm could a coat really do? I slip my arms through the cool, leather sleeves. My legs yell in protest as I stand up. I have to use a wall for balance to keep myself standing. I force my body to allow me to lean over and zip up the front of the jacket, despite the tension in my back. I bend my knees repeatedly to loosen my legs out.

Man, I'm stiff. Just how long have I been unconscious anyway? I remember becoming human again, defending Hollow Bastion from the Solstices, then Roxas…

Roxas! What had happened to him? I rack my brain but can't come up with any memory to prove that he's ok. I only remember that blinding light. Roxas was right in the middle of it, was the cause of it actually. He had used the Keyblade to…save everyone. Was there any chance he could have survived? And what about the others? Were they still alive too? Were they _here? _I had no clue how I had ended up on this world. There was no way to know where they were either. But if I'm here and… fairly alive, maybe they are too.

When my legs allow it, I begin to walk the lonely street before me. There is a sudden flash of lightning and a crack of thunder so loud and close that I jump in shock and tumble to the ground due to my cramped muscles. I catch myself on my hands and knees, scraping up my palms and fingers on the dampened cement. I curse under my breath. Stupid storm.

I sulkily get up and shove my hands into my pockets. There is something in them. I draw out two leather gloves. "Sure, now I find these…" I mumble to myself as I pull them over my raw, aching hands. I sigh and, hands in pockets again, trudge along toward nothing.

When the small lane I'm on widens out into a path through the dark city, I look skyward. The clouds hide any hope-bringing stars but I stare and gape anyway. Looming above the tear-drenched world is a moon, enormous and pale and shaped like a heart. Everyone had always believed it was just a legend, a tale made up eons ago, a myth. But I'm truly standing beneath it. Kingdom Hearts.

The heart of all worlds. The key to the universe. It looks down upon this lifeless world, eternally hidden in its mystic sanctuary. Where the heck am I…?

* * *

He brought me somewhere. Somewhere he said would be familiar to me. All I see is orange. He said he looked into my memories and found this place. Then he went into my memories again. He drew out my name. That's what he said it was. It sounds familiar. Sounds like some distant person that I used to know.

I don't know who I am or why I'm here. I only know what I see. Everything else is blank. I place my hand over my chest where a thick scar cuts across my heart. It seems important. Somehow. The man grins at me. He speaks. "That's why you're here." A scar is why I'm here. I remember…just one thing…

He talks again. "You are why we're all here." His words don't make sense. I stare at the ground. It's green. He changes my name. Says the other name means nothing now. Says I'm one of them now. Those in the coats.

He walks away again. He beckons me to follow him. Calls me by my name. My new name.

I am XIII.


	2. Chapter 1

A/N: Hello again everyone! Here is the first official CHAPTER, seeing as the other one was the prologue. Thanks so much to everyone who read and reviewed, hope you're liking it :) I hope it isn't too confusing. The page breaks usually signify a switch in point of view, so just a heads-up there. Hope everyone is following it alright. You may not know who's speaking at first, but hopefully you can figure it out from little clues and the way they talk. My normal writing style is Katie and her POV is the majority of the story so I hope you're all fine.

Also, I'll probably be updating twice a week and I'm thinking of keeping Wednesday and Sunday as the update days. So look for new chapters on those days. If I don't have time to post, I'm sorry. I'll try to get to it the day after.

And sorry but I gotta get the legal stuff outta the way now.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, any of its characters, worlds, plotlines, or any other things pertaining to the series. I DO however own the plotline of this fanfiction and any OCs that appear in it. They are not to be used/recreated in any other story, image, etc. without my direct consent. Thank you and enjoy the story.

* * *

The rain never ceases here. I have no way to measure time because the clouds hide any trace of sky. Kingdom Hearts perpetually looks down with its chilling stare and there's nothing else. Only its glow and the rain.

All the streets look the same. I have no idea if I'm walking in circles or not. I still have no clue where I am either. There seems to be absolutely no life here.

I spoke too soon. A strange creature in white floats out from behind a building. It drifts aimlessly through the air, almost like a kite. I instinctually ready myself for battle but it doesn't seem to notice me. It hovers above the ground and slowly snakes its way down the street. I watch the creature curiously and follow.

Before long, the strange white being and I come to an opening in the narrow streets of the city. The creature continues on and disappears around a corner but I stop in my tracks. The open, asphalt field before me is eerily illuminated by the lights from a towering skyscraper. It looms into the dark, restless sky above the city. Why does everything in this world give the impression that it's watching me?

I take a step forward but something stops me. A blur. A flash almost. I shake my head confusedly. Glancing around, I cautiously start to walk again. After a few more paces, it happens again, but this time, my head starts to whir. I squint my eyes shut and grab my head to stop the dizziness. I see us walking to Hollow Bastion Castle.

The sensation immediately stops and my eyes snap open. What the heck was that? It was like remembering something without meaning to.

"They don't call it Memory's Skyscraper for nothing," a voice calls out.

My senses snap into instinct mode again. "Who's there?" I yell.

I'm answered only by the rain beating against the ground.

"Who's there?" I repeat. "What do you want?"

Thunder rumbles softly through the distance. The world doesn't make a sound. With a sigh, I shove my hands in my pockets and keep walking. I head in the direction that the white creature from before had gone. I turn and walk around the side of the skyscraper. Buildings surround either side of the road, threatening to close in and suffocate me. I feel more comfortable when the road widens out. But suddenly, it ends.

And there, hovering above a gaping abyss, is a gigantic, haunting, white castle. Kingdom Hearts sits patiently above it. A strange, black insignia is carved into the main tower. I can't describe what it is, but the whole place gives me a strange feeling. It's not quite fear, but not quite anxiousness. It's almost like…premonitions…

"Don't go in there," a voice warns.

A chill runs up my spine and I whip around. A figure in a black cloak identical to mine is standing there. The voice sounds like the same one as before.

I narrow my eyes. "Why not?"

"You won't like what you find."

It isn't until then that I recognize the voice. I take a tentative step forward.

"…Riku?"

* * *

Today, I'm ten days old. I live in a castle now. That's where the tall man with silver hair took me. There are other people in black cloaks here. They all watch me when I walk by. They never say anything to me.

I have my own room. I have a bed, a desk, and a journal. I don't have much to do so I write things down. My training starts tomorrow. I'm not sure what that means, but I was told not to question anything. The man who brought me here is the leader of the castle. His name is The Superior.

There are twelve other people here in the castle. I'm the thirteenth. That's why I'm called XIII. That's all I know right now.

* * *

He pulls his hood down to reveal his face. "Hey."

"Hey, Riku," I smile back, laughing slightly at the casual greeting. "Long time, no see."

"Yeah…how are you?" he asks.

"Alive," I shrug with a smirk. "You?"

He looks down like something is troubling him. "…I'm fine."

"What's wrong?" I ask. "You ok?"

He pauses. "A lot happened while you were…asleep."

"More like unconscious. How long was I out anyway?"

"…A month or two."

"That long?" I gape in disbelief. "Wow, I must've been pretty tired!"

"You took a pretty hard hit back in Radiant Garden," he replies sullenly. This was the thing that made me feel uncomfortable around Riku. There were times when he was so darn _serious._

"Where are weanyway? It's a pretty weird world," I note, trying to change the subject.

"Let's talk somewhere else," he suggests, glancing up warily at the castle. We start to walk back into the city.

"Where's everyone else? Are they here too?" I wonder.

Riku says nothing.

"Riku, you're making me nervous…Is everyone ok?"

He shifts his eyes nervously before pulling me into a narrow alleyway. "You have to be careful what you say here, Katie. You never know when something else might be listening," he whispers. He looks over his shoulder before continuing. "Look, nothing is like you remember it. Everything has changed. Don't count anyone as your friend and don't trust anyone you don't know. I have no idea what's going to happen or if we can set things back to normal."

I don't understand most of what he's saying, but I suddenly feel clueless and alone.

"I'm sorry…but that's the way things are right now." He pulls his hood back up and walks out of the alleyway. I mimic the action and follow close behind. A brilliant flash of lightning shoots through the air. I look up to the sky. Kingdom Hearts meets my gaze with its mask of stone.

My heart shivers and I immediately focus on the road again.


	3. Chapter 2

A/N: Thank you again to everyone reading and reviewing this story. It means a lot. Also, if you're really confused by the first chapter and/or the prologue, sorry about that but that's how I intended it to be. Don't worry, things will get explained as the story progresses.

Lastly, I just wanna give a quick shout-out to my dad. It's his birthday, so happy birthday Dad! Love you!

And now, on with the story...

* * *

"I feel useless."

"You and me both, buddy," Yuffie sighs.

Hayner glumly kicks a rock across the Usual Spot. "We're just sitting around."

"Yeah, well, there isn't much we can do, you know?"

"Hey, morale support is more helpful than you think," Olette shrugs.

"Yeah, c'mon guys!" Pence joins in. "They need you! That's a fact!"

Hayner glances over at his old friends from Twilight Town and sighs. "Yeah right," he mutters under his breath.

Pence and Olette slump over. "Look," the brunette girl begins, "I know things are rough right now, but it will get better. You'll see."

Hayner stares at the ground intently, trying not to make eye contact with anyone. "OK. Sure."

"Well, enough of this! Who wants ice cream?" Yuffie exclaims, hopping up from her spot.

"Sorry. Not me," replies Hayner.

Pence's jaw hits the floor. "You serious? You always want ice cream!"

"I'm not hungry," the blonde announces. "You can give mine to Rai."

Olette's face becomes sullen. "How is he doing?" she asks quietly.

Hayner exhales deeply. "I don't know. He's getting by. Fuu and Vivi are pretty upset too, but they've been trying to cheer him up. Their group just feels so empty now, you know?"

"Well, maybe ice cream really is a good idea," Olette admits. "You sure you don't wanna come?"

Hayner shakes his head. "Go ahead. I'll catch up with you guys later."

"Alright." Olette watches her friend worriedly as she heads out of the Usual Spot. Yuffie remains for a moment, as if expecting something.

"I'll meet you at the mansion later," Hayner tells her. The ninja nods and hesitantly leaves the area. Hayner sighs and slides to the ground, looking up to the patch of sky that peers through the roof. The sun shines warmly and sprinkles its light on the town below. Hayner curls his legs in close to his body, hugging them tight and burying his head in his arms to shut out the world.

* * *

Training starts today. I was introduced to someone named XI. He is supposed to teach me about recon. I don't know what that is, but I guess that's why I'm learning.

We traveled to another world using the Corridors of Darkness. XI said I could learn to open Corridors too, if I practiced. He said I would need to learn how so that I could do missions on my own later. I tried it. I couldn't do it.

The other world was really bright and hot. The sky was blue and there was no water falling from it. The ground was different too. It wasn't hard. It was yellow and soft when we walked on it. It was really weird.

For training, we watched the people in the town. XI told me that I had to watch them without them seeing me. I almost got seen a few times but XI helped me escape. I don't know why they shouldn't see us, but I'm not supposed to question anything.

I have more training tomorrow. I think it's more recon, but I'm not sure. The other members still stare at me. I don't really have anyone to talk to, so I like to wander. Except The Superior said I wasn't allowed to go into the dungeon. I can go anywhere but there. He said I wasn't ready to go there yet. I'm not supposed to question.

My memory is bothering me. I can still remember one little thing that isn't from this place. What's going on?

* * *

"Alright, I'm sick of this. What happened, Riku?" I ask sternly, stepping in front of my companion to bar his path. "What happened after we stopped the apocalypse? Tell me everything."

He stops only for a moment before brushing past me and continuing to walk. "There's too much to tell."

I sigh in frustration and take my place alongside him again. "So I'll just never find out? How about one thing? Tell me _one _thing that happened."

He doesn't even glance over at me. "I don't think that's a good idea."

I become more worried than angry now. "You're different, Riku. What's wrong? Tell me! We can get through this together!"

"I just…don't know how to fix everything. I don't know if our stories can have happy endings, Katie."

"Oh god…" My throat clenches tight and inhibits my breathing. "They died, didn't they? Sora and Kairi…they're dead."

"No," Riku states firmly, stopping immediately and looking me straight in the eye. "Don't say that. Sora is not dead."

"OK…but what about…what about Kairi?"

Riku turns and trudges forward with no answer.

My voice instinctually becomes quieter, like a secret cautiously peering into the vulnerable air. "Riku…is Kairi dead?"

His answer is a pained whisper that slips softly into the rain. "No. Not dead. Just gone."

"What do you mean…? You haven't found her yet?"

"I found her. But she's not Kairi…Kairi's gone."

"Riku, I don't…-"

"She lost her memory. It's gone. She doesn't remember anything. Not even me…"

Everything falls still. The rhythm of the rain picks up where my heartbeat left off. Thunder rolls overhead, dragging the silence away into the distance.

"There. Now you know one thing," Riku murmurs, pulling his hood up. Our journey continues without another word. I'm glad that I only asked for one detail. I'm afraid to learn the rest.


	4. Chapter 3

A/N: Hello all! Thanks again for the reviews and such. Just so y'all know, I won't be able to upload on Wednesday this week so I'm shooting for an update on Thursday. That is all. Enjoy. :)

* * *

"Cid! Can you hear me?" the young girl's voice fizzles from the communication watch.

"Yeah, I read you loud and clear, Yuffie. What's up?" Cid asks, focusing his attention on her urgent cries.

"We need back-up in Sector 2 _right now!_ We've got another one!"

"Oh gosh…" Cid immediately inputs a few keystrokes on the Twilight Town mansion computer.

"I'm coming, Yuffie!" Hayner screams, dashing through the mansion's transporter.

"Hayner is on his way! I'll phone up Rai too! Just hang in there!"

Yuffie clicks the communication link off on her watch and dodges more incoming bullets. The figure in black reloads his two guns as Tifa strikes at him. She hits air as the cloaked man vanishes.

"Behind you!" her enemy taunts, appearing with both guns trained at Tifa's back. Before the bullets can be loosed, Yuffie whips three ninja stars forward. The man in black sees them as they close in. In a flash, he teleports across the Sandlot, receiving three gashes on his arm along the way.

"Nice shot," he says with a grin. "You're fast." At that moment, Hayner appears on the edge of the Sandlot. "Hoohoo! More of you? Now it's a party!"

Hayner dashes into the Sandlot, club in hand. The cloaked man launches more bullets. Hayner cringes as he holds up his club like a guard and feels the attack ricochet off of it.

"The kid, Yuffie! Get the kid!" Tifa shouts as she swings her fist again. The young ninja warps over to the edge of the Sandlot where a kid in bindings struggles desperately. Yuffie swings her giant shuriken downward to free the boy. However, in that instant, a figure in black appears out of nowhere, wielding a lethal, gleaming scythe.

Yuffie's eyes widen in horror as the blade arcs right for her face. She begins to dance out of the way of the weapon as she feels its razor-sharp edge slice open her arm. Then, in a matter of mere moments, the figure grabs the screaming child's arm, summons up a Corridor of Darkness, and disappears with the boy in tow.

Yuffie stands in shock, gaping, not even bothering to notice the blood running down into her hand or the throb in her arm. The other enemy, who is being bombarded with attacks from Hayner and Tifa, also retreats into a Corridor. The two friends halt, glancing around cautiously to make sure that he isn't going to appear again. Rai arrives from the side.

"Hey, I'm here, y'know! What's the problem?"

Tifa and Hayner head over to Yuffie with Rai following. As they get closer, Tifa's eyes shoot out in surprise. "Yuffie, you're hurt!" She sprints over to her alleged younger sister and grabs the girl's arm, staring in horror at the flow of blood.

Yuffie winces at the contact and pulls away. "I'm fine," she whispers.

"Where's the kid?" Hayner wonders.

Yuffie's hands shake as she tries to steady her voice. "I'm sorry…There was another member…I didn't even see him coming…"

Everyone looks downward glumly. "Hey, don't worry," Tifa tries to comfort her. "It's not your fault. I'm just glad you're alive."

"I'll call Cid," the ninja mumbles. "Tifa, can you tell his parents what happened? I can't handle another one of those conversations."

"Sure," Tifa says understandingly. Yuffie flicks her communi-link on. "Hey, Cid?"

"Yeah?" the voice from the other side comes through.

"They got another one."

There is a pounding. "Dammit!" Cid swears to himself. "Alright. OK. Umm…just come back to the mansion for now."

"Cid, I'm sorry."

"No, don't go blaming yourself. They're just too strong. No one else got hurt, did they?"

"Yes-" Hayner begins, but Yuffie quickly cuts him off.

"No. Everyone's fine." She glares at the blonde, who is nervously watching the red liquid from the ninja's arm drip to the ground.

Cid sighs in relief. "Alright. Well, let's all regroup here."

"Got it," Yuffie replies, flicking the watch off. She turns and heads out of the Sandlot. Her friends worriedly follow.

"Did all the other people escape?" Rai asks quietly.

"Yeah," Tifa replies. It's silent for the rest of the walk.

* * *

I just returned from training. II and XI are arguing about some mission or something. II is yelling at XI. It's something about being able to handle missions alone. I'm not really sure. I try not to get involved.

Today, I did more recon stuff. I wasn't just watching people all day though. I was supposed to figure out people's strengths and weaknesses. The Superior says everyone has some. I wonder what mine are.

Tomorrow, combat training starts. That means I'll learn to fight. The Superior says I'll be good at it. I hope so. Maybe the other members will talk to me if I can fight like them.

I'm in my room now. It's a quiet day. Not too much thunder. The rain is just drizzling a little. I think I'm gonna nap for awhile. Figuring out people's weaknesses is really tiring.

* * *

"Well, this is it." Riku stops walking when we come to a dark, abandoned house at the edge of the world. The land literally drops off into an eternal abyss. The building itself sits all alone near the cliff, overlooking the emptiness.

I frown skeptically. "This is where we were going?"

"Yep."

"OK…why?"

"Because it's somewhere safe to stay for now."

I take a few exploratory steps forward, eyeing up the dreary living space. "It looks pretty shabby and run-down…but I guess it'll do. We're just staying the night, right?" I glance back at Riku, hoping for a 'yes.' I get nothing. He's gone.

"Riku?" I whip around, yanking my hood down and scanning the area. "Riku!" He is nowhere in sight.

"Great…" I mumble. "He ditched me. Thanks, Riku." I trudge over to the entrance of the house. I look up at the dilapidated, grayish mass and sigh. "At least he gave me somewhere to go."

I push open the creaky door and peer around. There isn't much inside: a sink, an old wooden table with a few chairs, and a couch that is literally folding in on itself. I shut the door behind me as I look around the room. "Could be worse,"I shrug, trying to convince myself that it isn't as ugly and dreary as it really is.

With a sigh, I slump down on the couch. I sink deep into the scratchy cushions and stare up at the wooden ceiling. What is going on? Riku has never acted like this before. Sure, he was always pretty quiet and mysterious, but I could never see him leaving anyone behind. There's something he isn't telling me and I'm determined to find out what it is.

A strange movement breaks my thoughts. There is a flash of white in my peripheral vision. I leap to my feet, instinctually drawing my sword. Across the room from me stands an eerie soldier clad in white and grey. A slotted mask shields its entire head and it holds a long, thin sword in each spindly hand.

"Sure, Riku, a _safe _place to stay," I groan. "Who are you?" I call to the stranger, mentally switching to battle mode. The reply is like an echo through my head rather than a spoken voice.

_"Nobody."_

I brace myself as the warrior dances forward, swords gleaming as they slice through the air.


	5. Chapter 4

The two swords sing against each other's metallic blades. The grey- and white-clad warrior before me strikes gracefully and in the blink of an eye. The light of my sword falters slightly after each resounding strike but stays strong, glowing with a continual radiance. My enemy's twin swords are empty and dull, but their wielder brings them to life.

The foe drives me backward, striking relentlessly. There is no break and I struggle to keep up with the fight, both physically and mentally. _C'mon, Katie! Focus! _Roxas' voice rings through my head. I freeze.

The warrior takes the opportunity to swing the hilt of its sword into my jaw. A jolt of pain shoots through my head and I stumble backward. My vision is still blurry as my enemy leaps again and brings both blades down sharply. I barely manage to guard in time and the force throws me to the floor.

The strange, distant voice from before the battle sounds through my head again. _"You are allowing your emotions to hinder your instinct." _The silver figure looms above me, slender sword aimed at my throat.

I growl and knock it away with my own blade, leaping up to kick my foe backward. It dances out of the way with ease. _"Anger can only sustain you for so long." _The empty holes in the knight's helmet bore into me.

"GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" The light around my sword explodes as I hurl the metal weapon with all my might. At the last moment, my assailant disappears and warps across the room, avoiding death.

_"Anger blinds your focus. Instinct is key."_

I let out a war cry as I call back my sword and charge forward. My furious swings are useless. The foe dodges them all with a matter of steps and swerves. Then it whips both swords forward, propelling me backwards with the blunt handles.

_"If you want to defeat me, you must choose instinct above all other."_

I look up into the place where the opponent's eyes should be. Suddenly, something is different. The room has darkened and I find it harder to move, almost as if I am locked in slow motion. The warrior faces me calmly, waiting. Waiting for the opportune moment to strike.

I hold my ground, allowing all my focus and energy to flow into the trusty weapon at my side. The foe strikes. I watch each individual movement. The left blade swings in an outward arc, the other following it diagonally. The warrior's steps are quick and sideways. My body knows what to do.

I twist and backflip over both swords, their metal ringing in my ears as they swoop underneath me and cleanly slice apart the air. As my enemy passes me, I jab my blade into its side, landing on my feet expertly. I call my sword back.

The silver warrior stumbles forward and hesitates before standing upright again. It slowly raises both of its weapons and sheathes them behind its back.

_"Very good. You are truly a worthy Master."_

I whip around. "What?"

* * *

"This is stupid. We're not gonna find anything," growls Hayner as he glances over Cid's shoulder at the computer screen.

"Well, it's the best we got," the mechanic counters. "You got any bright ideas?"

Hayner scowls and backs off with a murmur. "Where's Merlin when you need him?" His comment receives several glares from around the room. "I know, I know… 'He was old.' Whatever."

Yuffie looks up at the ceiling. "Seems like a lot of people disappear just when you need them." At that moment, there are footsteps. Everyone turns as the door behind them opens. Riku steps in.

"Well, speak of the devil!" Cid exclaims. "Where in light's name have you been?"

"Where do you think?"

"Well, you were gone for a whole day. I just figured you found something out, at least a way to restore her memories or something."

"Not really. What about you?"

"Nothing yet. Sorry," Yuffie sighs.

"It's fine," Riku says darkly, turning towards the door again. "I'm gonna go check on her."

"Sora is with her right now. He's been keeping an eye on her."

"I know," Riku replies. "I just wanna see her."

"Um, Riku…" Tifa starts. "Maybe you should take a break for awhile. We're doing everything we can and you're gonna overwork yourself." Her real concern is that there isn't much they can actually do, though she doesn't want to destroy the urgent hope that Riku desperately clings to.

The teen replies firmly, "Tifa, Kairi is everything to me. I don't want her to have to start her life over, with no memory of anything. I will get her memory back, no matter what it takes."

Tifa sees that the argument will go nowhere, so she lets it drop. Riku begins to head out the door again.

"Riku?" Hayner calls to his friend, though his eyes are distant. Riku takes a step back.

"Yeah?"

"Any…any sign of Roxas yet? I mean, after what happened…he probably isn't…y'know…but I mean, it's possible, right?"

Riku stares straight ahead. "I'm sorry, Hayner." With that, he exits the room, leaving nothing but silence in his wake.

* * *

The figure across from me stands calmly. I warily send my blade away. Eyeing the warrior, I ask, "What do you mean by 'master?' And who are you anyway?"

The voice rings hollowly through my head. _"None of us have names anymore. I am simply labeled C.O."_

I uncomfortably continue. "Us? There are more of you?"

_"Yes, but none quite like me." _The more my strange accomplice speaks, the more I cringe. "_I am a link between your past and the future you must create. Therefore, you are my Master and I am at your service."_

"That doesn't even make sense," I retort, hoping this "C.O." will go away soon.

_"You cannot travel this path alone and there are others who need you. So much depends on you."_

"Y'know what? Thank you, but I'll figure it out myself!" I hiss.

_"Do you believe you can?"_

"SHUT UP!" Tears suddenly come out of nowhere and I have to hold them back as they try to escape and run down my face. "You have no right to be in my head like that…"

_"You miss him. You believe I'm trying to replace him."_

__I can't get any snappy remark out. I collapse onto the couch, trembling. "Kaden…" His voice had been the only one in my head. That was how we spoke to each other, how we understood each other. To have another voice there, one so empty and strange, hurt me in a place much deeper than my heart. "I don't know how you know Kaden, but you will never replace him…"

_"I only know what you have told me of him."_

"What?" My head shoots up in confusion. "I didn't say anything! I guess everyone thinks it's fine to pick through my thoughts, huh?"

_"Not your thoughts. Your memories."_

Something about the way it said that word makes me shiver. "That's…kind of unsettling. I'd rather you didn't intrude so much." In fact, I would rather have that weirdo leave right then and there. Just why was it hanging around so long? If being its 'Master' would mean having it follow me everywhere, maybe I should've just stayed unconscious.

_"I can also read your emotions, as they are often linked to memories. But that is not specific to you, as reading memories is."_

"You mean you can only see _my_ memories? Why mine?"

_"I am made of memories myself. More specifically, I am his memories of you. Thus, both of your memories are linked and I am linked to you."_

My head starts to spin as I try to comprehend all the information being thrown at me. "_His_ memories of me? You mean Kaden?"

_ "XIII."_

"Huh?"

_"I am XIII's memories of you."_

"I don't know what that means." I stand up and head toward the door, craving some time away from conversation, if that's even what this is.

_"Roxas."_

I freeze, tensing in disbelief. I turn to the gray warrior. "What did you say?" I demand.

_"You know XIII as Roxas. I am his memories of you."_

"So he's alive?" I yell, my voice rising in volume and urgency with each phrase. "Do you know where he is?"

_"This world is his home now. He resides in the castle on the other side."_

The ominous white structure I saw earlier flashes through my head. "Show me how to get there!"

_"First be warned, Master, that he is not as you remember him, just as you are not as he remembers you. There will be more consequences than one at your arrival."_

Riku's words ring through my head. _You won't like what you find…_ I push those thoughts away. "I don't care. Take me there."

_"Do not let your emotions sway your judgment-"_

"Take me to Roxas!" I cry, grabbing the samurai's jacket by the neck in anger. The material immediately sways in and out like a torrent of waves, my fingers sliding through it as if swimming through syrup. An image flashes through my head and I see myself falling into the pit of darkness that had swallowed my heart. I instantly retreat backward from the contact, recoiling and shaking as if awakening from a bad dream.

I stare at the ground, perturbed by the experience. Had I just seen Roxas' memory of me falling? "Take me to him," I whisper, afraid to look up. "That's an order."

For the first time, the warrior hesitates before speaking. _"…Yes, Master."_


	6. Chapter 5

A/N: Hello everyone! Sorry that I didn't post yesterday. Haven't had a lot of time on my hands lately. Anyway, it's been hard to meet deadlines and very few people have been reviewing so I think the updates need to be spread out a little more. I'll start updating weekly, so **every Sunday, there will be a new chapter. **Anyway, hope you're liking it so far! Please review so I know that people still care about this story :) or if you don't, then let me know.

This chapter has less action, but it's more of an emotional-type addition to the story. Don't worry, it picks up after this. So, without further ado, onto the story!

* * *

I've started combat training now. It's not as hard as I thought it would be. My body just does the fighting for me. The Superior says that's because of my weapon. He called it Keyblade. He says not everyone can use a Keyblade and that's why I'm so important. He says I'm the most important member in the Organization besides him.

Sometimes, the other members walk by and they stop to watch me train. It makes me uncomfortable but I have to keep training or The Superior will be disappointed in me. I guess it's not too bad. The other members never say anything to me. I don't know why I'm the most important member, besides The Superior himself. Maybe the other members aren't supposed to talk to me. I don't know. I shouldn't question all this stuff.

The Superior taught me about Nobodies. He says we are all Nobodies, even me, but we are special kinds of Nobodies. The lesser Nobodies don't really look like people. And instead of numbers, they're labeled with letters. The Superior says that since we are higher Nobodies and he is the leader of us, the lesser ones obey him. He can command them to do what he wants. He said that they're like us in a way. We all used to be human.

I still don't know what the difference between humans and Nobodies is. The Superior hasn't told me yet. I don't remember anything before being a Nobody, except that same short memory that I keep clinging to. It's so vague, but it has to be real if I remember it…right?

I have to tell myself that. It's all I have to hold onto right now.

* * *

The sunlight reflects longingly through the glass door that serves as the back entrance of the Twilight Town mansion. A hollow echo follows the _thud _of the library door closing. The silence ensuing it makes Riku feel all the more alone. He stares blankly ahead as he slowly crosses the walkway on the second floor of the Twilight Town mansion.

When he reaches the door on the other end, he sets his ear to the wood, listening. When he hears no sound on the other end, he knocks softly. "Sora? You in there?"

"Yeah. Come in, Riku," Sora's quiet voice calls from inside.

Riku pushes the door open and steps into the barren, white room. Sora is sitting on a white chair at a small white table, some of the only pieces of furniture in the room. Kairi stands by the window, gazing out at the woods.

She turns when she hears the door open and Riku walks in. "Hi Riku," she greets half-heartedly, a distant look in her eyes.

Riku smiles. "Kairi! It's so good to see you!" He quickly paces over to her, only to stop awkwardly before any sort of embrace. Too much movement or contact overwhelms her. The teen's smile immediately lessens.

"Hey, she remembered your name this time. That's good," grins Sora, trying to lighten the mood.

"Any other progress?" Riku asks desperately, hope apparent in his eyes.

Sora avoids his friend's gaze and scratches his head uncomfortably. "Sorry Riku…we tried some memory stuff but…she just doesn't remember. She's getting better at short-term stuff, though! It might come back to her in time."

"Yeah," Riku mumbles, clearly not believing anything of the sort. He glances back over at Kairi, who has resumed watching the world outside.

"I'm gonna take her out for awhile," Riku explains. "We'll be back soon."

"OK. Just…stay close," Sora instructs with concern.

"We'll be fine. We won't go far."

"I know. I know you'd protect her with your life," Sora admits. "I just don't want _you _to get hurt either."

"…I'll be careful." Riku takes Kairi's hand and leads her out of the room without another word.

* * *

"That's a rose," Riku explains as he walks with Kairi through the garden behind the mansion.

"Rose," she repeats, reaching for the blood-red flower.

"Be careful!" he warns, catching her hand before she can grasp it. "Roses have _thorns._ It will hurt you if you try to pick it."

"Oh, ok," Kairi nods, putting effort into understanding everything that's being said. "What about those? Will those hurt me?" She points to the flower patch next to it, which contains a variety of lilies and lilacs.

Riku chuckles. "No, these won't hurt you." He picks a tiny white lily and slides it behind Kairi's ear. "These are nice flowers."

Kairi laughs. "That's good." Riku's smile prolongs at the little sliver of Kairi's old self. The redhead looks over at another area of the garden and immediately shows wonder and curiosity.

"What are these?" she asks, flitting over to the red patch of plants that had captured her eye. Riku follows her, smirking softly when he sees which flowers she had asked about.

"These," he begins, "are called bleeding hearts. They're my favorite flowers of all."

Kairi picks one and examines it closely. "They do look like hearts. They're so pretty…" She pores over the collection of them before becoming troubled. "Hey, what's wrong with that one?" She points to one stem of flowers that hangs to the side of the group. The petals have begun to split at the bottom.

"Nothing is wrong with them," Riku tells her. "They're just splitting a little early. They'll all be like that eventually."

Kairi's face suddenly becomes saddened. "It looks broken."

"Well, hearts do break sometimes," the silver-haired teenager speaks softly now. "All hearts will die some time, because nothing lives forever. But some of them get damaged and they break a little too early."

Kairi frowns in confusion. "All hearts die? What do you mean?"

"Well, when someone dies, they're sorta…gone. They're not really there anymore. All we have left of them is our memories."

Kairi is silent for a minute. "…Riku?"

"Yes?"

"Promise your heart won't break too early. It sounds lonely to have someone die."

Riku smiles sadly through the water in his eyes. With a whisper too soft to hear, he murmurs, "I promise."


	7. Chapter 6

A/N: Hello! How's everyone doing? Just adding a quick author's note up here because we didn't see Katie at all last chapter so it's been a little while since her story. The last thing that happened with her was she demanded that C.O., the strange memory-being in the form of a samurai Nobody, showed her how to get to the Castle that Never Was so she could find Roxas. So here's the next chapter! Enjoy!

* * *

The journey to the castle is awkward in a way, but I do enjoy the time to myself. C.O. doesn't say anything, only leads me the way I need to go. The rhythm of the rain against the ground makes me feel numb. I listen for other signs of life, but the steady beat of water is the only sound masking the utter silence of everything. I can find no word to describe this world, other than empty.

The farther we walk, the more I begin to doubt myself. Maybe this isn't really a good idea after all. What if the residents of the castle don't like guests? Anyone who lives in a world like this probably doesn't like company much. But what does that mean for Roxas? If this really is his home now and he lives in the castle, the others must have taken him in and helped him along. Or is Roxas some sort of royalty now? I don't know how that would or could happen, nor do I understand why either of those options would be things Riku doesn't want me to know, but I can't think of any other scenarios. Unless Roxas was captured and enslaved…

No. Shut up, Katie. Don't think things like that.

Still, as awful as it seems, it is a possibility. And whether the people in that castle are hospitable or cruel, I have to keep going. If Roxas got in, I can too, and if Roxas had been _forced_ in, then he needs a hero.

We round a bend into a narrow, alley-like street. The discomforting rain and eerie silence continue. Finally, I can't stand it anymore. As much as talking to my odd counterpart does _not _appeal to me, I need answers.

"Co?" I call hesitantly. "Hey! Co! Can you hear me? C.O.!"

It doesn't even glance back at me. _"Yes, Master?"_

"OK, from now on, I'm you calling you Co, alright? C.O. Co. That's your name." Co is silent. "So, what happened to Roxas? Is he ok? I mean, he's alive but…is he hurt?"

Co continues walking as he speaks. _"The Superior took XIII in."_

"The Superior? As in, the leader of the castle? So Roxas is ok then?"

"_The Superior has his own intentions. XIII is but a pawn to him."_

"What?" I cry angrily.

"_The Superior is their leader but he cares not for XIII. He welcomes him only as a key to his plan."_

"Then we have to hurry! Walk faster!" I command.

_"XIII is in no danger. The Superior does not intend to harm him until his role is completed. But there are other innocent people in need of help."_

"Yeah, so hurry! We've got no time to lose!"

_"Raise your hood. You're nearing your destination."_

"I thought I was the one giving the orders here," I grumble, but I do as I'm told. "OK, can we go now?"

Co doesn't move. _"You must learn patience, Master. Your heart is strong but swift decisions will be your ultimate demise if you are not careful."_

"Sitting around does no good either! You have to be quick."

_"There is a notable difference between quick and foolish."_

I glare at the samurai as I storm past it. I continue the hike, guessing as to which way we are supposed to be going. If that thing wasn't Roxas' memories, I probably would've shredded it apart by now. The part I hate most is that everything it has said is an attack to me or what I'm doing wrong, but it's right. I am acting pretty foolishly and my stubbornness is keeping me from turning back. I have no idea what I'm getting myself into.

Co quietly follows behind me, letting me lead. We come to an intersection. I begin to turn right instinctively.

_"Left, Master."_

I kick myself for guessing incorrectly and turn the other way. The buildings on either side of us are towering, ominous, and shield almost all view of the sky. Co silently tails me. I glance backwards. "Go ahead and laugh at me. I know you want to."

_"Nobodies cannot laugh," _it replies. _"We feel no emotion."_

"Oh." That explains the stoic personality.

The structures around us eventually diminish until we are on an open, black platform with nothing around us. The dead end eventually plunges into an abyss, much like the one near the run-down house.

"OK…that's helpful," I drone sarcastically. "Where do we go now, oh knowledgeable guide?"

Co takes a place beside me. _"Up."_

"Huh?" As I look skyward, I'm surprised to find that the castle is looming right above us, floating over the gaping nothingness below. Upon our arrival, a large, white platform lowers from the entrance to greet us.

_"This is the back entrance," _Co explains. _"You are more likely to avoid detection this way. However, once you enter, there is no turning back. Are you still confident in your decision?"_

"No," I admit, assuming it can sense my doubt anyway. "But I have to do this."

Co says nothing in protest. We step forward and the platform begins to rise, carrying us up toward the gaping entrance in the back of the castle. The closer it gets to the gigantic structure, the more my heart pounds and my hands refuse to steady.

Co stands beside me, staring straight ahead. _"You are afraid."_

"Just because I have a little uncertainty doesn't mean I'm scared. And you can't prove it! You can't sense it. Fear isn't an emotion…is it?"

_"You're shaking."_

I sigh and roll my eyes. "Fair enough."

_"You crush all fear in the heat of battle, yet this terrifies you."_

"This is different," I begin, searching for words. "I have no idea what I'll find in here or what it will mean for me, if anything. Roxas is somewhere inside here but what if, after everything that's happened, he's changed? You did say he wasn't the same as I remembered him, right?"

_"So you fear change."_

"No. Well…I don't know. I guess I just fear the unknown."

_"The unknown is simply what you make of it."_

"But if I don't know what the unknown is, how can I make anything out of it?"

_"Do not rely on me for answers. I am simply stating what you already believe to be true."_

Before I can say anything else, the platform stops moving and we are standing in a dark, cavernous hallway. It's eerily quiet. I take a deep breath, gathering myself. Stepping forward, I survey the area. "Alright, Co, you with me?"

When there's no reply, I turn back around. "Co?" It's gone. Co is nowhere to be seen. I try not to panic but something inside me keeps screaming "trap."


	8. Chapter 7

I had more combat training earlier today. I had to fight VIII for practice. I didn't do well. VIII said that if we were in a real fight, I would be dead. I don't understand how I lost if the keyblade is so powerful.

The Superior said that when it's time, I'll know what to do.

* * *

Cid, Tifa, and Yuffie sit in the computer room. Cid works intently while Tifa keeps him company. Yuffie sits quietly off to the side, sharpening her ninja stars. "I set more alarms throughout the city, particularly in Sector 3 where there are the most people," Cid announces. "And I strengthened the Claymore defense system. Hopefully, we'll be ready the next time one of those cloaked folks decides to show up."

Yuffie hurls a gleaming shuriken at a wall, landing it directly between two pipes, damaging neither of them. She stands solemnly. "They're not getting away again." She turns toward the door. "I'm going on patrol now."

Tifa worriedly steps in her way. "Hey, take it easy. Rai and Hayner are out patrolling right now and we haven't seen any of the cloaked people in days anyway."

"Their shifts are over now."

"Yuffie-"

"It's alright," Cid cuts in. "She can go. But wait! At least take Riku with you." Cid flicks a switch on his watch. "Hey, Riku…Riku! You there?" When there is no answer, Cid shakes his head. "That kid…" He hangs up and calls Sora.

"Hey, Sora. Can you hear me?"

"Yeah, what's up, Cid?"

"Your buddy isn't answering his watch. Is he still with Kairi?"

"What? Riku? He left awhile ago. He said he was going over to check in with you guys."

"What?"

"He isn't there?"

"No, we haven't seen him in hours! Dammit!" Cid groans and rubs his head in frustration. "We'll try to find him. Call me back if you hear from him."

Tifa and Yuffie stare at Cid in shock. "Riku is gone?" Tifa asks.

"Seems like it," Cid growls. "I swear the next time I see him, I'll chain him to the wall."

* * *

It's time.

* * *

I inch cautiously through the castle. The corridor eventually lightens until I can see clearly. I observe my surroundings. Everything is very spacious and white. The architecture is interesting, but there's almost no color at all.

I aimlessly wander, unsure where I'm trying to go. Nothing here feels right. I'm on edge and nervous the entire time. Eventually, there's a split in the hallway. I begin to turn right, but then pause. I have a flashback to my walk through the city. _Left, Master._ I slowly turn around and go left.

I come to an incredibly long room with seemingly no floor. Grey boxes float in the missing space. I reach my foot out to one of them and tap it. It bobs up and down slightly but seems fairly stable. I slide my foot onto it, allowing the rest of my body to follow until I'm standing on the large block. The next one is a farther distance, so I have to take a small leap to get to it. _Who would design a room like this? _I wonder.

That's when I spot something across the way. On the other side of the room, a strange white creature floats through the doorway and over the blocks. It looks like the thing I saw a few days ago in the city. I watch it, remaining completely still so I don't startle it. It twists through the air, snaking its way across the room. When it nears me, it suddenly stops. It drops onto the box next to me and stares at me. It doesn't have a face but the creepy white insignia on its head bores into me like a drill. I stand still as a stick, unsure if it suspects me of being a foreigner or if it's simply curious.

Suddenly, it begins to convulse and, with a horrifying screech, the zipper around its head bursts open to reveal a vicious, gaping mouth. Definitely suspects me! I nervously grit my teeth and immediately draw my sword. It leaps backward, away from the weapon, and disappears into thin air. My heart is pounding but I slowly relax. The sword must have scared it away…

Nope. Within seconds, it reappears with eight of its buddies following it. They each take a place on a neighboring box, surrounding me completely. I whip around, looking for any chance of an escape. The white creatures simultaneously coil, then dive for me. I go with my first instinct and leap over them. I just barely make it to another box. I'm forced to drop my sword and grip the edge with both hands to stop myself from falling. I can see the monsters in my peripheral vision, turning towards me for another strike. I frantically hoist myself up onto the box and take a running leap at the next one.

The first creature screeches and begins its dance through the air to pursue me. The others disappear but I don't have time to wonder why. I cross the floating blocks as fast as I can and dash out of the room. I find myself in a hallway much like the others. I keep running with the strange monster close behind me.

I pass a hallway that branches off of the one I'm in. Two figures are standing there, chatting. They both turn my way. The redhead laughs. "I wonder what XIII did this time! That Dusk sure looks mad!"

I freeze. Didn't Co say that XIII was Roxas?

The thing supposedly called a Dusk stops and hisses at me again. A few of the Dusks from the other room reappear in front of me, along with a few other odd-looking creatures. The blue-haired man who was talking to the redhead frowns.

"That's not XIII…"

I gulp and run for my life. I call my sword and swing it madly as I barrel through the wall of enemies in front of me. I rip apart a few of them while others dodge my blade. Either way, I clear a path and dash down the hall.

"Inform The Superior!" the blue-haired man yells to his partner behind me. I don't look back. I'm nearing a blank wall. I reach it and look around hysterically for another path. It can't be a dead end! Something pierces into the wall next to me, so close that I can feel the wind of its impact. My heart leaps in shock at the huge, spiked weapon that lands mere inches from my head. I whip around to see the man, its wielder, closing in on me as he calls his lethal weapon back.

I back up, holding my sword out in my quivering hands. He's getting closer and the mob of monsters is right behind him. I back into the wall and suddenly fall through it like it's jelly. Gravity bends and I fall in a ninety-degree angle until I drop out of the ceiling of another room. I land on my hands and knees, wincing at the force. I hardly feel the pain under the pulsing of my veins.

I turn tail and run across the room and out of the doorway. I have no idea if my pursuers followed me through the wall-ceiling but I'm scared to find out. I end up in another room, this one completely open with no obstacles or furnishings. I pause to catch my breath when I hear no one behind me. I try to assess my situation and what I should do next, but I can't think clearly. My brain is racing a hundred miles a minute and all I can figure out is that everyone in the castle is coming for me. My only hope is to keep running and stumble upon an exit before they stumble upon me.

A few seconds later, more creatures appear. There are three of them and they look exactly like Co.

"Co? Is that you?" I call hopefully. Maybe he brought reinforcements!

The three warriors draw their swords in unison.

"I guess not…" My mind flashes back to my first encounter with Co and the battle we had. It wasn't exactly pretty. If Co hadn't been coaching me along the way, I may have lost that fight. If I just remembered instinct, maybe I'd be ok…

Who am I kidding? My biggest concern is getting out of here. I watch the samurais carefully, recording their movements in my mind. At the opportune moment, I leap. My sword clangs against the middle warrior's blades and I flip between the two outside opponents. Before they can strike back, I run for the door on the other side of the room.

The space around me sways and shifts as I pass through the doorway. A hallway materializes in front of me. I hurry onward. The corridor splits into two parts. I run right. It splits into four separate ways. The farther I journey, the more maze-like everything becomes. Soon, I have no idea if I am going in circles or not. Dusks begin to appear throughout the tunnels. I manage to fight them off since they only come at me one-at-a-time, but my strength is diminishing.

Finally, I find a hall that leads out of the mess behind me. I cough and lean against the wall, too exhausted to run anymore. Just then, I spot another cloaked figure coming down the corridor towards me. I pant and stumble to an upright position again, holding my sword with the only energy I have left. He has definitely spotted me. He walks closer and closer until I can almost see his face. There is no way I can fight this guy.

Maybe I won't have to. "Roxas?" I gape in disbelief.

Our gazes lock and a flicker of recognition flashes through his eyes. It only lasts an instant before a hand grabs me and pulls me into a Corridor of Darkness.


	9. Chapter 8

A/N: The next chapter may not be posted until next Monday, the 30th. Just a heads-up. Thank you to everyone still reading and please review! :)

* * *

I tumble across the grass and land in a heap on the ground. I mechanically sit up, mind still racing. I stare at the ground in a sort of daze. "We have to go back."

"What? Are you crazy?" Riku yells. "You were almost killed!"

I look Riku in the eye. "Roxas was there. We have to help him escape."

"It won't do any good."

"Won't do any good? Riku, we're talking about Roxas! He would do the same thing for any of us, maybe even more! You're just gonna leave him behind?"

"He's not the same."

"Does that matter? I'm not the same either! And neither are you…"

The tension in the air fizzles away. Riku turns away from me. "It's not like that, Katie…He's not Roxas anymore. I got you out of there before he hurt you. He doesn't remember anything: his past, who we are, who he is. Nothing."

"Huh? But he did know it was me."

A spark ignites in Riku's eyes. "You sure?"

"I'm pretty sure…"

"How do you know?" he demands urgently, taking a step forward.

"Well, um, I don't know…He looked me right in the eye…He just seemed to recognize me."

"How? How did you do it?" Riku yells frantically, grabbing me by the collar. His eyes are intense and bore into me anxiously. I don't know why he's so concerned about it, but I've never seen Riku like this and I'm suddenly terrified. My voice shakes uncontrollably.

"I-I-I don't know. I just saw him down the hall…and then, uh, we s-sorta just saw each other. Um, I said his name…"

Riku lets go of me and turns away angrily. "I already tried that…" he growls.

That's when I understood. "Oh…you wanna restore Kairi's memory…don't you?"

"Of course." His voice is barely above a whisper.

"I can try to help," I offer. "I mean, I have no idea what I did for Roxas but…it's worth a shot."

Riku glances back at me. "Are you sure you wanna do this?"

"Of course," I reply. "Why wouldn't I?"

"Because it will be incredibly hard for you."

"You don't know that," I point out, grinning confidently.

"Not the memory thing. It will be incredibly hard for you to see everyone again."

"Oh." My playful edge immediately dies out. "How are they doing? Not too well?"

"It's not just that. Everyone is still recovering from what happened but…there's something with you too."

"Ok…" I wait for him to reply. He remains silent. "Enough with the dodgy answers!" I cry. "Just tell me what's going on!"

Riku tries to meet my gaze but breaks eye contact immediately. "Katie…no one else remembers who you are."

I stand agape for a moment. No words come. Finally, I react with a laugh because I don't know what else to do. "You're kidding! You've gotta be kidding!" My laugh turns slightly hysterical and I start to sound like an asylum escapee. Riku just stares grimly. I try to pull myself together and analyze the situation appropriately. "Riku…how could they forget me? I mean…just how? C'mon! We've lived on the same island together our whole lives! You don't just wake up one day and forget about your friends."

"I don't know what happened," he chokes out. "I'm sorry, Katie. It must have been from that blast. It screwed everyone up. And…and that's why-"

"Why you tried to keep me in that world," I finish for him. "You didn't want me to face everyone again as a total stranger…Isn't that right?" I lean forward, trying to shoot a small smile at him to let him know I forgive him. He still won't look at me directly.

"Yeah, that's why…I'm sorry things played out like this. You've already had to face this once before and now you're going through it again. I just wanted to protect you as long as I could."

"Thank you, Riku," I reply him earnestly. "But y'know… I don't know if I ever told you this but, um, I'm pretty tough," I tease, playfully socking him in the arm. He tries to force a smile but it's not a very good one. "OK, well let's go see Kairi and see what we can do about her memory, alright?"

Riku nods. In reality, the thought of being around everyone, especially Sora, without them remembering me at all breaks my heart, but it happened once before. I would have to be strong again. I finally look around at our environment and try to orient myself. It looks like the Woods in Twilight Town but I can't be sure. "Umm…any idea where we are?" I ask hopefully.

"Yeah, we're a little ways behind the Twilight Town mansion. It isn't too far from here," Riku explains. We both start to walk, me following behind my silent friend.

* * *

The castle is just coming out of its panic. The lesser Nobodies were going crazy and the other members were all searching for that girl who broke in. I didn't tell anyone she escaped, but they figured it out after the Nobodies settled down. I have no idea who she was. She had a cloak like us, but she isn't one of the members. They were all trying to kill her. I was instructed to hunt her down too. But how did she look like one of us if she isn't in the Organization?

I have to find her again. I don't know who she is, but she knows something about my past. She called me Roxas. The Superior said that's who I used to be. She's the only link to my time before the Organization. She's my only link to the time I can't remember.

I don't know how I can find her, though. She probably won't come back, and if she does, I won't get a chance to talk to her. But I can't go looking for her either. The Superior said I can never leave this castle unless he instructs me to. I don't know what to do.

Maybe I could force one of the lesser Nobodies to bring her to me. They're supposed to obey the higher Nobodies after all. That seems to be my only hope right now. And I have to know. I have to know who I am.

* * *

We enter the room. It's completely white and pretty empty. It seems lonely. Kairi is sitting at the table in the middle of the room, coloring something on a piece of paper. Sora is asleep in the corner in a chair. At the sound of the door opening, he jerks awake and looks around drowsily.

"Oh, hi Riku," he mumbles. He looks like he hasn't slept well in days. However, as soon as he sees me, his eyes immediately double in size and he leaps into an offensive position, hand already poised to call the Keyblade. "Who's that?" he cries furiously, but he also looks slightly confused. Kairi becomes anxious from the commotion.

Riku steps forward with his hands out to calm Sora down. "It's ok! She's with me. She's a friend of mine. This is Katie."

Sora slowly loosens up and skeptically walks over. He holds his hand out. "Hi, I'm Sora. I'm also a friend of Riku's."

I shake it, secretly wishing I could give him an enormous hug instead. "Nice to meet you, Sora." The words feel unnatural and outright wrong, but I try not to think about them. Riku guides the nervous Kairi over to me too.

"It's ok, she's my friend," he reassures her. Her trust level doesn't appear to rise much, but I can't blame her. I probably do look like one of them. They must have had some bad encounters with that group too, the black-coated ones.

Riku looks grimly at Sora. "Take a break, Sora. You should've been switching out with everyone else."

"It's ok, I don't mind," Sora smiles, eyes drooping. "They're busy anyway."

"OK, well, go take a nap. I'll stay here with her." Sora nods and leaves sleepily. Now it's just me, Riku, and Kairi in the room. I turn to Kairi, catching Riku's gaze along the way. His eyes ask me to help as much as I can. I give a small nod before looking Kairi directly in the eye. I try to sense any recognition in her, but she still seems clueless. I open my mouth and try speaking a little to see if I can trigger something like I did with Roxas.

"Kairi? Do you know me?"

She frowns as if she's thinking really hard about something. "Yes. You're Katie. You're Riku's friend."

I sigh but keep trying. "Have you ever seen me before? Try really hard to remember…" I watch her eyes carefully, looking for that familiar glint like I saw in Roxas' eyes.

"I saw you…when you came in with Riku. That was the only time I saw you."

My heart sinks. I understand why Riku is so heartbroken. She really doesn't remember anything at all, not even how to speak like she used to. It's like talking to a child. She's completely different.

I glance over apologetically at Riku. I can tell that he's devastated but he mouths the words "It's ok." I walk over to the table where Kairi was drawing and look at her artwork. It's mostly just scribbles and random shapes. That's when an idea hits me. I take a clean sheet of paper and a crayon.

"Here, Kairi. Come draw a picture," I urge, holding out the crayon to her. "Draw me something you remember from a long time ago. Anything at all." It's worth a shot.

She nods with a perplexed look on her face, but takes the crayon and starts to work on the drawing. I take another blank sheet and crayon.

"Who is that for?" he asks, motioning towards the paper in my hand.

I smirk. "This is for you."

Riku stares at me in disbelief. "There's no way you're making me draw a picture."

"Nope," I reply. "I have some questions for you and you're going to answer them." I put the crayon to the paper and start to write them out.

_How do I use the Corridors?_

_ How do I get through the castle without being seen?_

_ Where did you get my black cloak?_


	10. Chapter 9

Riku and I went out to the Woods again after Hayner came to watch Kairi. Hayner's reaction to seeing me was almost the same as Sora's, even though Sora had warned him about me beforehand. I felt a mix of urges, one to laugh at him and his facial expression and the other to smack him on the head and scream, "Why don't you remember me?" Sadly, I did neither.

I stop walking when we're out of sight of the mansion. Riku takes a few more steps, looking off into the distance vacantly. His back is facing me. I cross my arms, waiting for him to speak. It takes him awhile, but eventually he does.

"You're not gonna let me stop you, are you?"

"Of course not," I smirk. "So you can tell me what I need to know or let me blindly wander back into that castle and get into even more trouble. It's up to you." I know I'm being harsh on him, but I'm anxious to get Roxas back and start looking for clues as to why everyone forgot me. I realize that waiting to go back to the castle would probably be a better idea so they're not expecting me, but I can't just sit around for days or weeks. It will drive me nuts.

"Alright," Riku sighs, giving in to my obnoxious and stubborn will. "Remember when you were a Heartless and you learned to open up the Corridors of Darkness?" I nod. "It's just like that. You should still be able to access them. It will just take a little more concentration."

"OK…" I say. I hold out my hand in front of me and try to conjure up some of the feelings I had when I used the Corridors as a Heartless.

"Sometimes it helps to close your eyes," Riku informs me. "It'll keep you focused on the darkness."

I don't like the sound of that, but I close my eyes anyway and take in the sheer lack of light. I feel that dark twinge in my heart again, like I used to when my Heartless instincts guided me, and I focus all my attention on that: the dark feeling. Before I know it, I hear a rush of air, and, upon opening my eyes, I see a Corridor of Darkness swirling before me, inviting me into its depths. I wriggle with excitement and look to Riku for an impressed smile. He nods in approval at my work.

"Now…where does this lead?" I ask.

Riku grins to himself in amusement. "That's the tricky part. You know how to direct them to specific places, don't you?"

"Well, yeah, but that time I forgot to pick a place…" I admit, scratching my head in embarrassment.

"Well, then it could lead anywhere."

"OK, well, next time, I'll be more specific. Now, how do I get through the castle without being spotted?"

"Well, first of all, keep that cloak and those gloves on at all times, hood up. Those help to shield you from detection." I listen attentively, making mental notes of everything he says. "Second, act normal. If your face isn't visible, you shouldn't rouse too much suspicion. But destroy any Nobody that spots you if it notices you're not like the others and tries to alert them. Even if it can't sense you right away, you may seem suspicious, especially if you're towards the back of the castle. The members hardly go over there."

"Okay," I nod. "What if one of the members sees me?"

"Then you're screwed."

"Okay, don't get seen. Got it. What else?"

"Get to the sleeping quarters. They'll be hallways lined with numbered doors. Look for the one that says thirteen. That's where Roxas should be."

"OK, but I have no idea how to navigate that castle…" I bring up.

"I can open a Corridor near that hall for you, but not too close. There are too many Nobodies around that area. There might be quite a few members in their rooms or near them too, so you'll have to be incredibly careful. If anything at all goes wrong, get out of there."

"Got it," I nod confidently. "Thanks."

"OK, you ready to go?" Riku asks, holding out a hand to summon up a Corridor of Darkness. The dark portal snakes into existence beside me, its ominous depths warning me of the dangers ahead. I wait for a moment in the silence.

"Riku…" I look right at him. "You never answered my third question." I could see in his eyes that he hadn't forgotten. He was just avoiding it. "How did you get this black cloak for me? And the one for yourself?"

"It's not important. Now, go. You don't have all day."

"Well, actually, it sorta is important. I mean, only the people in that castle wear these and Roxas had one too. It must mean something-"

"Go, Katie."

"I want to know!"

"There are more important things right now. Roxas is waiting for you."

"Yeah, I guess so," I admit. "But don't think you're getting out of this one! I will bring it up again!" I turn toward the Corridor. I inhale slowly, putting myself into an instinctual mindset, trying to let go of the questions I'm leaving behind. I stare into the portal, determined to come back with Roxas this time. I can't fail.

"Roxas, here I come," I swear solemnly, stepping forward. I try to focus on nothing other than my mission, but another thought suddenly begins nagging at me. As the darkness starts to envelop me, I stop abruptly. I whip around and yell, "Riku, wait! How did you know all that about the castle and the Nobodies?"

He doesn't answer before the Corridor collapses and swallows me up.

* * *

I stand among the nothingness of the blank castle walls. Everything seems quiet and there are no Nobodies to speak of. I slowly walk down the hall and turn around the corner, trying to behave as normal as possible. There are doors on either side of the hall, just like Riku described. I scan the numbers, searching for a XIII. The doors only range from II to VI. There is a staircase straight ahead. I climb it.

It leads to another hallway that is almost identical to the one below. These doors start from VII. I keep walking, watching the numbers as I go. VIII, IX, X, XI, XII…

I finally reach XIII.

I pause when I realize that I don't have a plan from here. I only charted out the infiltration part in my head. Now that I'm actually here, mere moments away from seeing Roxas again and helping him escape, I'm not sure what to do. I stand still for a minute, staring at the empty, colorless door. The XIII stares back, boring into me. I start to become paranoid and I'm afraid someone else may come up here or emerge from one of the rooms at any time, so I raise a fist to knock on Roxas' door. The tap is hesitant and quiet and, at first, I'm not sure it can even be heard from inside. I'm also not certain if he is even in his room. However, after a few moments, I hear movement.

The doorknob turns swiftly and my heart races. I don't know why I'm so nervous, but I suddenly get an unsettling feeling that this isn't going to work out how I planned. The door swings open and Roxas is standing in the entryway with a sullen and slightly confused expression. Upon seeing my shadowed face, he tilts his head and his confusion doubles.

"It's me!" I whisper hoarsely. "It's me! Katie!"

As soon as the words leave my mouth, Roxas' face changes to one of complete surprise, followed by anger. He grabs my collar and pulls me into the room, throwing me behind him. I stumble over and land uncomfortably on the ground. My hood falls, revealing my face. I look up at him and I can tell something is different.

"What are you doing here?" he demands.

"I-I came to bail you out!" I explain. "I'm here to help you escape…"

"Escape?" he repeats, confusion setting in again. "Why?"

"Don't you want to get out?" I ask slowly. "The others are waiting for you…"

Roxas growls in frustration. "What do you mean, others? Who are you talking about?"

I cringe at the harshness of his voice. "Everyone. Hayner, Pence, Olette, Riku, Sora…they're all waiting for you."

He grits his teeth. "I don't know who they are."

Something catches in my throat and I have to croak out the rest of my sentence. "You don't remember them at all?" My eyes start to water. "Roxas, you don't remember me?"

"HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT NAME?" He explodes at me and a dark shadow forms around his hand. Within moments, the Keyblade, Oblivion, is pointed at my throat. I slide back against his bed, shaking. The weapon is mere inches away from me and his dead-set gaze never wavers. His eyes are cold and distant, unlike the heart-warming smile I remembered in them. "How do you know that name? Tell me. Tell me what you know about my past."

I begin to tremble even more until I break down and the tears start falling like stars. "You…you really don't remember…How could you forget me, Roxas?"

His eyes ignite into a fury that can't be controlled. "DON'T CALL ME THAT!" he screams, rearing back with the Keyblade to thrust it through me. I inhale sharply. "Roxas, don't!" I jolt to my feet, but there's nowhere to run. The blade shoots toward me.

Suddenly, there's a blur of white in front of me and a _cling!_ of metal that deflects the key. My eyes widen in disbelief. "Co!" I cry.

_"Leave at once," _my ally commands. I hear a Corridor open behind me. Roxas throws another strike toward Co, which is easily deflected. The Nobody retaliates with a flurry of quick slices that Roxas struggles to counter.

"Don't hurt him!" I cry, running forward to break up the fight. Co briskly stops me with its arm while parrying another attack from Roxas.

_"Go, Master!" _

"Please don't hurt him, Co!"

_"I will not. Now flee!" _Co thrusts his arm toward me and an invisible force shoves me backwards into the dark portal. Roxas yells, "No!" and leaps toward the Corridor, but it closes between us before he can reach me. The face I see as the darkness blocks us from each other is the face of a total stranger.


	11. Chapter 10

A/N: Hello! Sorry this wasn't up yesterday. I completely forgot. Plus, I'm in the process of getting a new laptop so Sundays may just be an estimate for awhile. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

What do I do now? I was so close, I had the answers to my past right there in front of me, and they slipped right through my fingers. The Superior said I would know what to do when it was time, but I messed it up.

Just when is the right time? How long will I have to wait for another chance? What if I never get another one?

She's never coming back, is she?

* * *

I trudge through the entrance of the mansion, wearily pushing open the thick door in front of me. My mind is exhausted and my focus is solely on placing one foot in front of the other. I hardly even notice the loud bang that the door makes as it slams shut behind me. Without even thinking about where I'm going, I begin to sluggishly ascend the staircase in front of me toward Kairi's room.

As I approach the door, it swings open and Riku urgently steps out, an expectant look on his face. As he shuts the door behind him, he briskly steps over to me. "Where's Roxas?" he asks promptly, observing that I'm not accompanied by anyone. When I don't answer right away, his voice becomes even more urgent. "Katie, where is Roxas?"

I speak with no emotion, unsure how to put my words together. "I was wrong, Riku. He doesn't remember me."

Riku looks shocked for a moment before he recollects himself. "Oh… I'm sorry. So…you just left?"

_More like ran, _I mumble in my head, but I don't want to go into too much detail about my visit, so I just reply, "Yeah. There was nothing I could do."

The atmosphere becomes uncomfortable like usual. "So," I change topics, "how is Kairi doing?"

"She's fine. Hayner is still with her. I was just checking in on her. I was actually about to head into town for some patrol. You wanna come?"

I sigh. "Sure, I'll come."

"You don't have to," he quickly adds. "I just thought you might wanna get your mind on something else."

"Yeah, I do. Let's go."

* * *

"So, what exactly are we patrolling for?" I wonder as Riku and I stroll through the subway tunnels.

"Nobodies," Riku replies. "They randomly show up here and try to kidnap civilians. The worst cases are the times when the Organization members appear. They're strong and there isn't a lot we can do about them. It takes four or five of us just to drive one of them away. I have no idea if we could ever take one out."

"Yikes," I say sheepishly. "So, any idea why they're kidnapping people?"

"Cid and the others have been looking into it, but they're not sure of anything yet."

"What about you?" I question. "Do _you_ know why they're kidnapping people?"

There's a long pause. Riku stares straight ahead the whole time. "Yes." He doesn't say anything else, so I prod further.

"You gonna tell me what it is?"

He stops walking. "OK. You remember the huge explosion, the one that messed everyone up? Well, it didn't just affect us. It affected the entire world of Radiant Garden. In fact, there's basically nothing left of that world now."

This was news to me. "Oh, I didn't know that," I gulp. "So…"

"So, the Nobodies are all people who used to live in Radiant Garden. The blast shattered them into nothing but empty shells. They aren't even human anymore. Their hearts and souls are completely gone."

I pale. "Those things were…people?"

"Not only that," Riku continues. "But the Organization is comprised of Radiant Garden residents too. All of them were in Radiant Castle at the time of the explosion. That's why they look like humans. Since they were farthest from the blow and protected by castle walls, it affected them less. Plus, their royalty would naturally give them superiority over all the other citizens, so that's why the lower Nobodies obey them."

"That makes sense," I nod. "But how did we get out of it then? We're still human and we were standing right there when it happened."

"I honestly don't know," Riku admits.

"OK, so…why would the Organization be kidnapping people?"

Riku exhales loudly. "That's the tough part to hear," he tells me grimly. "Like I said, Nobodies aren't really human. The Organization is taking people hostage to…steal their hearts and become human again."

"What?" I yell. "How is that even possible? You can't just take someone else's heart for your own! Even Heartless know that won't make them human again!"

"They aren't just taking them and using them as their own hearts," Riku continues. "Now that they have Roxas, they have the Keyblade. They're going to make him use it to take everyone's hearts and sacrifice them to Kingdom Hearts. I don't know if it will work, but their leader is convinced that Kingdom Hearts can make them human again if they feed enough power into it. They want to use its power to restore their world and themselves."

"They're insane!" I cry, unable to believe my ears. Everything was becoming more and more complicated. "They can't just kill innocent people for their own reasons! We have to do something!"

"I'm trying," Riku growls. "But their leader is selfish and cruel and refuses to see the universe as a whole. He's only concerned with himself and getting what he wants. He could care less about the consequences of his actions."

"Some leader," I mumble sarcastically. We continue to walk again. "OK, so how did you find this out? I saw you at their world multiple times. Have you been spying?"

"I suppose you could call it that," he replies, seeming to avoid the topic. Before I can question him further, a ring of creatures wielding huge arrowguns springs up around us. My heart jumps and my sword instantly leaps to my side to defend me.

"I assume these are Nobodies!" I call, analyzing the foes around us.

"You bet," Riku replies, his back to mine. His dark blade is poised above his head, ready for combat. The Nobodies simultaneously aim inward at us, their guns heating up with red-hot, energy-charged bullets. "Get ready!" Riku yells, tensing. I crouch over, readying myself as best as I can, wondering if I'll really be able to dodge bullets.

A static thunder rips through the air as the red projectiles careen inward. The noise is enough to set my nerves ablaze and I feel my body react for me. I leap high into the air, the bullets whizzing beneath my feet. I bring my sword down over my head and slice straight through one of the Nobodies. It dissipates into tendrils of black and white.

I turn toward another one as it aims its gun and fires again. My eyes widen as the bullet shoots straight at me. I barely have time to react and I twist to the side, trying to avoid the attack. It skims my side and leaves a clean cut across my pocket, barely missing my skin underneath. As I complete my turn, I use the rotational momentum to build speed and hurl my sword like a boomerang. It slices through my foe with a flare of light.

Riku finishes the last of them as I call my weapon back to my hand. Making sure that the coast is clear, I relax and take deep breaths, catching my energy. Riku sends his blade away. "You alright?" he asks.

"Yeah, I'm fine. No injuries," I report, dismissing my sword as well. "Geez…I still can't believe those things used to be people."

"Don't think of them like that. They're not human now. If you can't get past that, fighting them will only be that much harder."

"I know. It's just weird to think that we might know them. They could be anyone. I mean, they could even be those four girls we met in Radiant Garden. You know the ones we saved from those Heartless?"

"They're not, Katie. Nobodies aren't humans."

"I know, I know," I mumble. "It's just kinda sad that everyone we worked to save are the enemies now."

At that moment, Riku's watch started to beep. An 'Incoming Call' message projected above the small screen. "Hey, you have your watch with you for once," I tease. Riku glares as he answers it.

"Hello?"

"Thank the light you answered! It's Cid! Rai and Tifa are up by the train station right now. We've got another member! Get up there as fast as you can!"

"Got it," Riku nods quickly, flicking the watch off. "Let's go!" He draws his blade again, running toward the exit of the tunnels. I follow suit, calling back my sword and dashing in the direction of the train station. As we run up the hill through the town, Riku gives me advice.

"Are you ready? This is going to be one of the toughest battles you've ever been in. They're going to be fast and their attacks will be unpredictable. You have to be prepared for anything and you can't let your guard down. Support everyone else. Try to outsmart the foe. Got it?"

"Got it!" I yell bravely, though I don't feel confident in the least. Riku talks about these members as if they have god-like abilities. How powerful can one Nobody be?

We reach the summit of the town and enter the open, brick plaza in front of the Twilight Town train station. Rai and Tifa try to hold their ground as a black-cloaked man with an array of lances assaults them. Riku doesn't hesitate to dash forward and leap into the fray. I'm slightly taken aback by the member's weapons but I soon aid my comrades as well.

Riku shoots a Dark Fira from the side, which draws the Nobody's attention away from Rai and Tifa momentarily. As Riku begins to battle with the dark-haired man, I leap in and swipe at the Nobody. He doesn't even glance at me as one of his lances fires upward and guards my attack. I stumble backward, regaining my momentum. Tifa jumps up behind him and brings a fist down. Before she can land the blow, the member's weapons all gather tightly into a sphere that shields him and then blast outward with tornado-like winds. We are all sent hurtling backwards and land on the hard ground. The Nobody stands calmly in the center of the plaza, smirking at Riku.

"Well, if it isn't our friend Riku," he sneers. "The Superior is getting tired of waiting."

Riku just charges at the foe. A lance rises to meet him, the handle catching him in the gut and tossing him effortlessly over the Nobody's head. "Riku!" I cry, jumping up with my sword ready.

The man turns around to face the panting teenager, a mischievous glint still present in his eyes. "In fact, I think I heard him talking to the others…he said that if you don't bring the kid to us soon, he may just destroy your girlfriend's memories completely." He shrugs dismissively as he says it.

Tifa frowns. "Riku, what is he talking about…?"

Riku ignores her. "SHUT UP!" he screams, swinging forcefully at the Organization member's head. In a flash, the Nobody grabs one of his spears and swings it against Riku's blade, knocking it far out of reach. The other lances start jabbing at him and he's forced to dodge them all. Despite my confusion over their short conversation, I immediately leap into action. Jumping between Riku and the four weapons shooting straight at him, I guard the lethal attacks, land, and pivot to push Riku out of the way of the fight. I continue to guard the onslaught. Tifa and Rai begin running toward the fray too, but Riku holds a hand up and orders them to stay back.

"KATIE, GET OUT OF THERE!" he screams, firing more magic. The black-haired man hurls me across the plaza and flips over Riku's fireball as it hurtles toward him. Then, he shoots straight at me, all six lances poised to strike. I've just landed on my feet and regained my balance and my enemy is coming at me at light speed. I don't have time to "get out of there."

Before I know it, lethally sharp weapons are being thrust at my face and body. I somehow manage to guard against the first assault, but within seconds, most of them have drawn back and struck again. I watch Riku's face melt into pure horrification as an indescribable pain shoots through every nerve of my body. Suddenly, random images flash through my mind at blinding speed. I see myself on the islands with Sora, Riku, and Kairi, I watch myself fight alongside Tifa and the others, I see Roxas and my wyvern form sitting on the dock together when he first told me that he recognized me, I see myself hanging out with Hayner's group, I'm talking to Yuffie, I'm with Sora on the Bailey wall, I'm running from Seifer and Rai the first day I met them, I'm with Kairi at school, I'm training with Tifa, I'm with Cid, I'm with Riku, I'm with Olette, I'm with Sora-

It all flies through my mind so quickly that I can hardly distinguish each image. My life is literally passing before my eyes. Holy shit, I'm dying. This is what dying feels like.

I'm back in reality, seeing Twilight Town instead of millions of memories. What happens in the next ten seconds all happens so quickly and is so unexpected that I can't comprehend it as it occurs.

I look down to see three of the member's lances jutting through my gut. I can do nothing but stare in shock as my body screams out in agony. With a disgusting smirk, the man retracts the weapons from my flesh. Instead of a fountain of blood, which is what I expect to see, my wound fizzles like computer data and seals back together. I nearly faint from shock and the Organization member's expression turns from malice to utter stupor and disbelief to stunned pain as Riku's blade shoots through him from behind. Rai clutches his head in pain as he catches Tifa, who has suddenly passed out, while the Nobody fades away in a spindly, black mist. My vision blurs and Riku's desperate cries are the last thing I hear before I completely lose myself to the darkness.


	12. Chapter 11

A/N: Hello again everyone! Here's the next chapter of Black Hole! Hope you're enjoying it :) Next Sunday is move-in day for college so I definitely WON'T be posting a chapter that day XD so there won't be any updates until further notice...it may be a few weeks before I post again. Until then, cheerio!

* * *

_"Awaken."_

I slowly open my eyes. I see nothing but white space. Rubbing my face, I slowly sit up to find myself in the white room that Kairi stays in, lying on the table. Riku is standing by the window, gazing out at the world. When he hears me stirring, he turns around with a start.

"Katie, you're up!" He walks over quickly. Kairi, who was sitting nearby, comes over to me too. They begin questioning me about my well-being and how I'm feeling.

"I'm fine," I tell them groggily. I assess my fuzzy headache and sore abdomen with surprise. For being stabbed straight through with three lances, I'm actually feeling pretty amazing. I rub the impact point where the weapons had pierced. It doesn't even feel scarred. Riku turns away with a disturbed look on his face. "I've never seen anything like that before."

"I know!" I cry. "What the hell was that? I literally fused back together!"

"Not that," Riku says in a low, dark voice, staring at the ground. "Not...just that."

"Oh," I say. "What do you mean then?"

"I've never seen violence like that. I've never seen my friend stabbed through right in front of me."

I swallow hard. "Sorry, Riku," I croak.

"Don't do that again," he whispers.

"Sorry," I repeat. "But I didn't mean to…tell that other guy not to do that again, 'cause that hurt-"

"Stop it," Riku demands. "I can't tell him anything. He's dead. I tore him apart."

The air in the room is tenser than a stretched rubber band and Kairi has been scratching her arm nervously for the last minute. I try to start a conversation to ease the stressed atmosphere.

"So, did you cast a spell on me or something?" I ask. "I mean, my skin doesn't usually…fuse itself back together or anything…that was pretty magical." I attempt a smile, but it becomes an awkward tilt of the mouth.

"No," Riku replies curtly.

"What about the others? Did they do anything? Magic, anything at all?"

"No. I don't think so."

"Well, there had to be _something!_" I protest.

"I have no idea what happened," Riku answers. "We're all just as confused as you."

That's when I remember the commotion that had preceded my blackout. "Wait a minute. Are the others OK? Hadn't Tifa passed out too?"

"She's fine," Kairi chimes softly. "She woke up not long after everyone got back."

"What happened to her?"

Kairi looks lost. "We don't know. Riku said it could be shock, but Cid said Tifa would never faint just from seeing violence. She's pretty hardened to that stuff."

"What about seeing someone's body freakily sew itself back together?" I add distastefully, sliding off the table to stand and stretch my legs. "That would scare the pants off of anyone. I'm going to find out what that was all about."

"How are you gonna do that?" Riku asks testily.

I shrug with an air of nonchalance. "I'll ask around." I head towards the door.

"Ask around?" he repeats incredulously. "Who are you gonna ask? It's not like this is a common medical problem!"

"That's ok," I grin, glancing back over my shoulder. "I think I know someone who can help."

And if not, then I don't know who can.

* * *

The Superior said my training is complete. He said my first true mission starts today.

He led me down into the dungeon. When I asked why we were going down there instead of through a Corridor to another world like the other members do, he said my mission was special. My mission was right here inside the castle.

Down in the dungeon, there were a bunch of cells that had big, iron bars on them that no one could have gotten through. A lot of them were empty cells, but we went farther into the dungeon and then I heard people. There were quiet voices and sounds of moving around. We stopped at the first occupied cell. A group of three adults huddled gloomily in a corner. When we stepped up to the door, they all watched us with frightened eyes. I didn't know why they were scared. I didn't even know why we were down there.

The Superior started to talk. He was talking to me, even though he watched the frightened prisoners the whole time. "Step forward." I stepped forward. "Call the Keyblade." The shimmering black weapon materialized in my hand. "Free the prisoners." I didn't know what that meant but my instinct knew what to do. I drew back the blade. It was pointed at the shivering man in the middle. My hand trembled and the Keyblade quivered with fear. Overriding the blade's will, I thrust it forward.

The air around me shattered with the echo of human screams.

* * *

"Co!" My voice rings against the trees of the Woods. A bird's chirpings are the only replies to my call. "Co!" As I walk, fallen leaves crunch under my shoes. The fresh air of the forest fills my lungs. I stop walking when Co's voice is still absent. "Co, come out! I know you're here somewhere!"

_"I've been here all along, Master." _A haze of white and grey appears before me and Co materializes.

I glare. "You irk me."

_"Perhaps Master would appear more menacing if she were to choose less sophisticated language for the current situation."_

"You're one to talk," I point out.

_"However, I can pull it off." _ I growl and stare fiercely at the ground, searching for a snappy comeback._ "Relax, Master. That was a joke."_

I roll my eyes and grumble, "I thought you said Nobodies don't have a sense of humor."

_"That doesn't mean we can't make jokes."_

I sigh. "Whatever."

_"What is troubling you, Master? Your mind is restless."_

"Well…I think I'm just going to get straight to the point," I begin. "What the hell is wrong with me?"

_"I do not understand your question."_

"Something about me isn't right, Co," I say. "I got hurt earlier…really badly…and my body sorta just…um…sealed itself back up. Like, instantly. It was…not normal, to say the least."

_"I know this already, Master. I was there. And I already understood what you were talking about."_

I yell in frustration. "You just said you didn't understand my question!"

_"Yes. I understood what you were asking about, but I did not understand your question."_

"How does that make any sense?!"

_ "Nothing is wrong with you, Master."_

I fall silent. "Oh…"

_"But what you ask is why your body reacted this way."_

"Yeah, I was sorta hoping you would know, because right now, I have no leads."

_ "The answer is quite simple: In a sense, you are dead."_

"WHAAAAT?!" I scream, every inch of my body rocking with disbelief. My mind begins to do somersaults.

_"The blast in Radiant Garden caused by XIII destroyed you, or would have if not for your friends. Their memories of you are the reason you're still here. They hold you together."_

My breathing has doubled its usual speed and I've lost all ability to think in an organized matter. I pace back and forth at dangerous speeds, trying to take in what I was just told. "What? No, that's crazy. That can't be right. No, no, no, that's wrong."

_"Why else would they have forgotten you?"_

"Huh?"

_"Their memories of you no longer reside in their own hearts."_

I fall back against a tree and let myself slide to the ground. "I…I need to sit down."

_"You are sitting, Master."_

I hardly hear Co's comment. We remain this way, me sitting and staring blankly at the ground, Co standing in front of me silently. After about a minute, I try to talk. "So…let me get this straight…I was basically obliterated in Radiant Garden…and now my friends don't remember me, because their memories are holding me together and I would fall apart without them...?"

_"Yes, Master."_

"So I didn't die when I got speared because…I'm already dead. And I didn't disintegrate or even get a scar…because their memories sealed the wound back up."

_"That is correct."_

I'm still shaking my head in disbelief. "I don't…I don't know what to do. I don't know…I don't know, what do I do, Co?!"

_"Only you can decide that for yourself."_

"Is there a way to give the memories back?"

_"Yes. Physical contact is enough to transmit the memories back to them, even just a brief touch. But without them, you will fade away into nothing. The more memories you give away, the weaker and less real you will become."_

"But if I don't give them back…they won't remember me anyway, right?"

_"Yes."_

I throw my hands up in exasperation. "So it doesn't matter either way!"

_"That is for you to decide, Master."_

"Well, I can start to give everyone their memories back and they'll remember me but I'll be dead."

_"You can afford to give back some memories, but each lost memory will weaken you."_

I shake my head. "No way, I can't choose who gets to remember me and who doesn't. That's not fair at all." I frown. "Well, wait. What about Riku? He remembers me."

_"He was shielded from the blast by your other friend. She guarded him from any damage and therefore his memories remained unchanged."_

"But hers were…Oh no." My face drops in horror. "Co…I have Kairi's memories too, don't I?"

"_Kairi's memories are different. All of hers were lost but not for your survival. Her memories formed their own being. Until the two are reunited, she will not remember her past life or any of you."_

I stand up quickly. "So I could get that back without turning into nothing! Do you know where it is? Her memory?"

_"Yes, but once again, it will be a perilous journey that is best not leapt into without great caution."_

"I promise I'll be more careful this time. Just tell me where it is!"

_"It, too, lies within the Castle that Never Was."_

My shoulders sag. "Oh great."


	13. Chapter 12

Hello all! Sorry it's been awhile. I've been moving into college and getting into the swing of things and I just got Word on my laptop, like, fifteen minutes ago XD But here's the next chapter! Hope you enjoy!

* * *

People are faced with many decisions in life. There are simple decisions, such as what to wear every day, what to eat for lunch, and what to do to pass time. Then there are tougher decisions, like whether to attempt a suicidal mission with one close friend or with a group of people who have no idea who you are. This is the decision I'm faced with at the moment.

Both options are fairly nerve-wracking. In the end, will I choose the group of people who have no idea who I am? Yes. After all, they're still my friends.

Am I afraid of my own friends? Yes. Who isn't?

I creep into the Twilight Town mansion's library, closing the door quietly behind me. The stairs down to the basement wait patiently. I descend them, mentally preparing myself for the conversation ahead. My biggest concern is that they'll think I'm an intruder and gut me before I can even speak. I saw Yuffie do that to a Heartless once. So yes, I'm afraid of my own friends.

As I approach the door to the computer room, it slides open automatically to let me in. I tense and throw my hands up innocently. "It's just me, Katie, Riku's friend, don't hurt me!"

The room is empty, aside from Cid, who sits at the computer. Upon my entrance, he turns slowly to face me in his seat. "Hello there."

I gradually relax and step forward. "Sorry, I just didn't want anyone to think I was an intruder or something."

Cid shakes his head as he turns back to the electronic screen. He talks as he continues his work. "No one but the Restoration Committee itself comes in here. Riku did say you were a weird one."

"He what?" I yell. I storm up behind Cid and slam a hand down on the back of his chair. "Did he say anything else about me?"

"Ummm, let's see…we're not allowed to jab, stab, hit, kick, maul, or otherwise kill you."

I roll my eyes. Riku is getting a jab, stab, or maul the next time I see him. "So, where is everyone anyway?" I wonder.

"Patrolling the town," Cid answers. "You need something? Uh, Katie, was it?" He swivels around to face me.

I smile. "That's right. How's everyone been lately?"

"Ehh, we're surviving," Cid replies. "A lot of kidnappings and stuff. I don't know how much Riku told you."

"Quite a bit," I answer. "A group called Organization XIII, going around and kidnapping innocent people, some big plan about becoming human after the-"

"What?" Cid exclaims, interrupting me. I realize that maybe Riku didn't tell them _that _much yet.

"Umm, never mind, that's about it," I fumble. "So, umm, h-how much do you know about the Kairi incident?" I recover quickly.

Cid sits back in his chair and sighs. "Yeah, Riku's pretty damn upset about that. We've been trying to help but there isn't much we can do."

I smirk. "Wrong."

Cid cocks his eyebrow. "You sound like you have a plan."

I start beaming. "I think I know how we can get her memory back. We're gonna need everyone's help, though."

"You sure it's gonna work? I don't wanna disappoint Riku even more."

"Don't tell Riku," I instruct. "Just in case. But I'm positive it'll work if we can pull it off."

"Well, alright," Cid's face lights up as he readies his watch to contact everyone. "Time for a group meeting!"

I smile to myself. It's been too long.

* * *

They're all gone. The dungeon is empty.

Now I'm just waiting. For more hearts.

* * *

I had to convince Riku to stay with Kairi for the next day or two, which wasn't difficult. He did seem a little suspicious about what I would be doing, but I told him I wouldn't get into any trouble. I hope I was telling the truth.

We all meet up in the shopping district of Twilight Town. We're up on the walkway above the streetcar tracks, some of us standing and others sitting on the ledge that serves as a railing. We chose this spot because there's more space here than in that crammed, little computer room and honestly, we all needed some fresh air. It's a little awkward at first, since everyone is chatting like the old friends they are and I'm standing off to the side like a loner, but Sora invites me to sit with him and Rai, which makes me feel a little better. I think Rai is afraid of me, though. Must be the black cloak.

Cid arrives last, trudging slowly up the steps and huffing like a train engine. He mumbles something about getting old before he walks over to the group. "Hey everyone," he waves.

"Hi Cid," we all say in unison, most of our voices unenthusiastic and monotone.

"Well, sheesh. Nice to see you too," he growls. I chuckle. Some things still haven't changed. Sora looks over at me questioningly, but I just shake my head. I can't explain it to him anyway.

"Well," Cid continues. "If you haven't met Katie yet…this is Katie." He gestures toward me. I wave, smiling sheepishly at everyone's blank faces. "We're here today because she has an idea about how we can help Riku. She knows how to get Kairi's memory back."

This catches everyone's attention, and suddenly, a wall of wide eyes are all fixed on me. No pressure or anything.

I stand up, taking a deep breath. I choose my words carefully. "OK, so I know this sounds crazy, but Kairi's memory is on another world." I let that sink in before I continue. "The problem is that it's inside a huge castle which…happens to be the stronghold of Organization XIII."

There's a simultaneous gasp at this point and the group starts to erupt.

"Are you crazy? You wanna get us killed?"

"We can hardly even face one of them!"

"There has to be another way."

"Forget it!"

"There's no way we could get in there."

I try to quiet everyone down but the commotion is overwhelming. Finally, Cid shouts above everyone else, "SHUT UP!" Everyone falls silent. "My goodness, give her a chance to speak! We've done crazier things before and playing it safe is for wimps! And this might be our only chance to save Kairi, so listen up!"

I scratch my head. "Umm, thanks Cid. So, as I was saying…her memory is inside their castle. There's a back entrance though, which should make it easier to avoid being spotted. I can get us to the place where they're keeping her memory but there's no guarantee that it won't be guarded. We may have to fight a few of them."

There's an uneasy silence. Hayner seems to be thinking hard about something. "Wait a minute," he says. "Why would they have her memories in the first place and why would they care so much about keeping them?"

This thought hadn't occurred to me. I search for words, but finally, my answer is, "I'm really not sure."

The others fall silent again. I speak up. "But I do know this: I can't do this alone. If we wanna help Riku and Kairi, we have to work together. I need every single one of you. I don't know what's going to happen in there, but if any of us attempt this alone, we will be killed."

"Well, what if we're all killed?" Yuffie cries.

Everyone glances back and forth between each other, trying to decide what to do. Sora, who has been sitting silently on the railing the whole time, stands up. "Well, I'm going. Cid is right. We've done crazier things before. And this is really our only option, unless we want Kairi to lose her old memories forever. So even if Katie and I are the only ones willing to try, I'm still going for it."

I smile and mouth a 'Thank you' to him. Hayner steps forward. "Alright, count me in." He grins and high fives Sora. Eventually, Rai, Tifa, and Yuffie agree to come too and our small band of heroes is reunited again. Cid shoots us the thumbs-up. "If you need anything, you just call."

"We will!" Sora calls. "And we will come back with Kairi's memory! I promise!"

I create a Corridor to the World that Never Was. Uneasily and uncertainly, everyone files through. I start to follow them.

"Hey, Katie," Cid says right before I step through the portal. I turn around. He stares solemnly into my eyes. "Bring them back safely."

I nod. "I will. I promise." Then the darkness envelops me and carries us all to the land of nothingness.


	14. Chapter 13

Some of the other members brought new prisoners to the castle today. The Superior said I have the week off, though. We aren't feeding more power into Kingdom Hearts for a little while.

I had more training this afternoon, just to practice. I'm getting better at one-on-one combat. I beat X in training today. He seemed really angry because he left really quickly without saying anything, but Nobodies can't feel emotion so he must've just had somewhere to be.

VIII said I wasn't too bad at fighting, which made me feel better after last time. But then he said he wanted to battle again and I still lost. He's really good. He's stronger and faster than me. I will beat him someday, though. I'll train until I'm stronger and faster than him.

I'll be better someday.

* * *

The ends of my nerves dance with electricity and my stomach flutters like a nested bird leaving home for the first time. As we embark closer and closer toward the castle, every inch of me pulses with adrenaline and anxious fear. I take deep breaths and plow through the light drizzle of rain that perpetually falls from the sky. Everyone else follows, constantly looking around warily. The tension in the air is as tangible as the rain itself.

We arrive at the castle and ascend to the opening in the back. The platform stops moving once it reaches the entrance and we all stand in a line, waiting. I stare into the darkness. _Are you ready, Co? _I think to myself.

_"Yes, Master," _comes the resounding yet enclosed voice of the memory-being. _"Are you?"_

I take a deep breath_. Yeah. Here we go._

Our motley crew creeps through the castle with me leading, Co guiding my every step. It doesn't show itself, so as not to alarm the others, but its voice instructs me on which direction to head. We haven't run into any Organization members or even any Nobodies yet. So far, so good.

We enter an area of the castle that I've never been to. The path winds around outside for awhile, always heading upward. When it finally returns indoors, there are three paths to choose. _"The middle," _comes Co's voice. I take the middle path. Everyone follows.

_"Left, Master."_

_ "Go straight."_

_ "Right."_

I obey Co's instructions, walking through the castle without a word. The others think I know exactly where I'm going. I have no idea.

Co's words suddenly change their tone. They're no longer simple instructions. They become more serious and quick, like urgency without the anxious emotion underneath. _"Keep walking, Master. We are approaching the room where Naminé is kept."_

"Naminé?" I whisper in confusion.

"Huh?" Sora says behind me. "Did you say something?"

"What?" I look behind me frantically. "Uh, no. No, I didn't." I have to remember to only talk in my head. _Who's Naminé? _I wonder.

_"She is Kairi's memories. Turn left." _I quickly do as told, turning down yet another white hallway. _"That is what the Superior calls her. However, you may find it more difficult to retrieve her successfully than you thought."_

_ Why's that? _I ask.

_"Because you forgot something very important."_

_ Huh?_ I stop walking. Everyone else halts as abruptly as they can, but we nearly start a domino effect that knocks us all over.

"Woah, what's the hold-up?" Hayner calls from the back. I don't answer right away.

_Forgot something important? What do you mean? What did I forget, Co?_

_ "Your gloves."_

I glance down at my bare hands. I freeze in horror and my breathing starts to become quick and panicked.

"Hey! Katie! What's going on?" Yuffie yells, trying to snap me out of my shocked state.

I turn around slowly, eyes wide and terrified. "They can sense us," I whisper.

"What?" Everyone's expressions display confusion. I can only feel terror. They can sense everything. No one is wearing the protective coats. I'm not even fully covered. The Nobodies can sense our presence and they're definitely coming.

"Run!" I yell, beginning to run back in the direction we came from, but it's too late. Organization members begin to appear on either side of us, barring us into the middle of the hallway. Everyone huddles back-to-back, facing their enemies and trying to mask their fear. I step forward and draw my sword. I summon a Corridor behind me that leads back to Twilight Town.

"Tifa, get everyone out of here," I instruct.

"I don't think so," one of the members in front of me chuckles as he steps forward. With a swish of his hand, my Corridor disappears. I take a step back, my panic overtaking my sense of logic. I can feel everyone's fear rolling off of them in waves. I slowly back up until I'm side-by-side with Tifa. I whisper to her as softly as I can, "I'll keep them distracted while you grab Kairi's memories. I'm pretty sure they're in that room at the end of the hall."

Tifa nods without a word, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. The members close in like wolves cornering prey. The two members in front of Tifa and I are a massive redhead and a sickly man with long, greasy blonde hair. The shorter, skinnier man advances forward with a psychotic grin and a strange, barbed contraption on his arm. The other man stands silently behind him, an enormous, heavy-looking weapon in his hand.

"Ready?" I whisper, feeling my leg muscles coil as I prepare to pounce. "GO!" Tifa bounds forward at superhuman speeds, weaving around her first obstacle. The second member swings his weapon downward to crush her, but she she flips over it and continues her dash down the hall.

The members on the other side of me leap forward to battle my allies. The man with the blue weapon on his arm pursues Tifa while the redheaded colossus walks toward me. I wait for a moment, but then decide to get the jump on him. I figure I can use my speed as an advantage over him. I run toward him, staying close to the wall. As I approach, I use the wall as a ground to jump off of and I hurl myself toward his head. He guards my attack but I flip over his head and whip around with another slash, this one aimed at his midsection.

He's faster than he looks. By this point, he has already turned and parried my strike, leaving me completely open. He swings his massive behemoth of a weapon at me and I barely step back far enough to avoid it. I call my sword back as a wall of geysers blasts toward me from down the hall and envelops me. I sputter and regain myself as Yuffie leaps for the redhead's throat.

The battle halts when Tifa's voice rings down the hallway. "I got Kairi's memories!" she shouts, running out of the room with Naminé in tow. We all glance her way and I prepare to open a Corridor next to her to get her out of there as soon as possible. I never get the chance.

Tifa cries out as a hand grabs her neck from behind and lifts her into the air. The member responsible is different than the others. His eyes are penetrating and vengeful, and he gives off an aura of superiority. Something in my very core trembles.

_ The Superior._

"Tifa!" Yuffie screams, running down the hall. The red-haired man catches her with one hand and slams her against a wall, trapping her. I leap to my feet with my blade shimmering. The Superior grins at me with malice and power. His grip tightens and Tifa whimpers as she starts to lose consciousness. Yuffie begins to sob and struggle to escape her enemy's grip.

My insides boil over with anger. "Let her go!" I scream, readying a Corridor in my mind that will open right behind the Superior.

When the Superior speaks, his voice echoes down the hall with a booming tone like thunder. "I do not intend to kill her, if that's what you're afraid of." He releases Tifa and she collapses to the ground, unable to get up. Naminé runs over to her anxiously, but with a snap, The Superior traps the Kairi look-alike in electric bindings. "Take them all to the dungeon. Do not let the Keybearer escape." With that instruction, he disappears down his own Corridor and vanishes from sight.

The redhead, who already has Yuffie, summons a Corridor and hurls her toward it. I quickly open a Corridor in front of it that leads back to Twilight Town. Yuffie falls through and is safe. The other members lunge for Sora, who flips over them and lands in safety, searching for his next move.

"Over here!" I yell, trying to get him through the Corridor as well. He runs toward me but the other members come back around to snag him again. Hayner and Rai attempt to protect him. I somersault through the air and stop the members from breaking through Hayner and Rai's blockade. Sora turns around and hurls the Keyblade. The two members in front of me dodge it as it whizzes between them.

"Katie, we have to help Tifa!" Hayner cries, glancing down the hall. The blonde man with the creepy grin has taken her and opened a Corridor. I begin to run down the hall after him, calling back, "Get out of here, you hear me?" I reach the member before he can kidnap Tifa and slice at him. I leave a significant gash on his arm and cause him to drop Tifa's limp body. Fast as lightning, I open a Corridor beneath her and she falls through to Twilight Town. I close it just as quickly, preventing the Nobody from following.

The member's shield-like weapon emerges on his arm again and he swings its lethal spikes horizontally toward my torso. I grab his arm and flip over the weapon as it swings under me, jerking forward as I land to yank him over my head. Once he's on the ground, I stab my blade downward to finish him off. He rolls out of the way by mere inches while shooting some sort of ice spell. My arm freezes over and is immobilized.

"Let's go!" Hayner yells. The members around him have been beaten back and are momentarily defenseless. They begin to run for the Corridor that leads to Twilight Town. Rai leaps through and Hayner has one foot into it when Sora stops and looks my way worriedly.

No, don't do it, Sora. Leave me here.

"C'mon, Sora!" Hayner screams.

"Katie's in trouble!" he yells, starting to run my way. "I'll be there in a second! Go!"

"No, wait!" Hayner calls after him. The redheaded member thrusts his hand in Hayner's direction and the Corridor begins to close around him. "No! Sora!" The darkness envelops him and the Corridor is gone.

My enemy takes advantage of my paralyzed state and launches an attack at my face. I duck under it and shuffle backwards, trying vainly to free my arm somehow. I begin to trip over my own feet as he throws another lethal jab at my face. I squint my eyes shut and instinctively turn away quickly, expecting the worst. My massive ice-arm clubs him in the head and knocks him to the ground dizzily. I stare in disbelief, then start to grin. I just socked him out!

"Katie!" Sora calls. He launches a Fire spell from the Keyblade and the ice around my arm disintegrates.

"Thanks," I say quickly, flexing my fingers and shaking out the numbness. The Nobodies down the hall barrel toward us. A Corridor appears behind us and the redhead leaps out, swinging his enormous club downward to crush us. We both dive to either side of the hall and it slams down between us with a reverberating crash. The Nobody who commands water summons another wall of geysers. It blasts both of us off of our feet and we land on our backs at the end of the hallway. Before we can resist, they're upon us.

The blonde man holds my arms behind me like a human handcuff. The redhead does the same to Sora. We struggle to escape but it's no use. I try to squirm out of my enemy's grip but the Nobody twists my arm even farther and pain shoots all the way up to my shoulder. I wince.

"What should we do with this one?" the fourth member asks. He gestures to Naminé.

"Just put her back in the room," the water member says.

"No!" I protest. Sora yells and tries to escape but he can't get away either. Suddenly, I feel a swift force strike me in the back of my neck. My vision blurs for a moment before everything goes black.

I don't see the light again for a long time.


	15. Chapter 14

A/N: Hello again everyone! Feels like it's been forever...

Anyway, I felt the need to add an author's note in here because I really like this part of the story. The next couple chapters are some of my favorites. Believe it or not, the story is only about halfway over! But the action and suspense just keep growing and growing from here. This chapter isn't insanely action-packed like the last one, but it has some deep character stuff and plot things so I like it for that. But don't wanna ramble too much...your opinions are what matter in the end...

So, without further ado, enjoy chapter 14!

* * *

"What do we do now?" Hayner fidgets nervously.

"Someone go get Cid," Yuffie demands quickly, holding Tifa's limp hand. "Hurry."

"I'll go," Rai offers, running off toward the mansion. Hayner, Yuffie, and an unconscious Tifa remain in the Sandlot where the Corridor of Darkness from the castle dropped them. Yuffie sits against a wall beside her friend while Hayner stands with his arms crossed, tapping his foot and trying to keep his composure.

"You think she's gonna be ok?" he asks, referring to Tifa.

"I'll make sure of it," Yuffie states, staring fiercely at the ground. "We're not going back there again."

"We may have to," Hayner replies. "Sora is still back there."

"Of course he is."

"What does that mean?" Hayner cries angrily.

"Don't you get it?" Yuffie hisses. "The whole thing was a trap! Didn't you hear the Organization? 'Do not let the Keybearer escape.' And then everyone _except _Katie and Sora get out just fine? I don't think that's a coincidence."

"What are you saying?" Hayner demands.

"Katie had it all planned from the start. She's with the Organization."

"Yuffie, Katie is Riku's fri-"

"Think about it, Hayner." Yuffie cuts him off. "The reason we got discovered is because she _forgot _that they could sense us without wearing one of those cloaks. She sent Tifa to save Naminé instead of going herself and then Tifa got ambushed. Then when the goal was to capture Sora, everyone _but _him escaped. All the pieces add up."

Hayner grits his teeth and stares at his shoes. "Yeah, I guess…"

"We never should have trusted her," Yuffie growls, looking off to the side with disdain. "We were so stupid."

"But that means you don't trust Riku either," Hayner accuses. "He trusts her and there's gotta be a reason for that."

"She could've deceived him too."

Hayner sighs in defeat and shoves his hands in his pockets. "I guess I just wanted things to get better so badly…that I didn't really think about what I was doing…"

"Happened to all of us," Yuffie says. "Don't worry about it."

After a pause, she sighs. "I'm sorry, Hayner. I don't mean to be so uptight. Things are just…rough, yknow?"

"I know, I get it," Hayner smiles sadly. "…I'm sorry about Leon. I know it hasn't been easy for you."

"Same with Seifer," Yuffie adds. "I know you two weren't the best of friends in the past, but it still seems hard."

"Yeah…Death is a strange thing."

The two fall silent after that. Afternoon clouds drift lazily through the air, their underbellies painted violet in the setting sun's rays. The world is quiet and empty. The two friends both look skyward, each trapped in their own thoughts.

Soon, Rai returns, running across the Sandlot with a huffing and puffing Cid behind him. "Alright, what's going on? Who's hurt?" He drops down beside Tifa, panting and trying to regain his breath. "What happened here?" He takes out a Potion as he talks, tilting Tifa's head back and letting the cool liquid run down her throat.

"She got roughed up pretty bad," Hayner explains. "We were ambushed. One of the members got her by the neck."

"We think…we think he might have been their leader," Yuffie adds.

"What?" Cid's eyes bug out and he stares at the ninja in disbelief. "How did you get out of there?"

"Katie." Hayner explains. "She opened a Corridor leading back here. She made sure we all got through."

"Well, _almost_ all of us," Yuffie continues. "They…got Sora. And Katie. They're both still back there."

Cid gapes. "You serious?"

"We aren't positive but…we think Katie might have been tricking us into going the whole time," Hayner adds.

"What? So Kairi's memories weren't there?" Cid yells.

"They were," Hayner says quickly. "But…without those black cloaks, the Nobodies can sense us. She knew that and brought us there anyway. I don't know. Maybe it really was a mistake…but she could have been with the Organization the whole time."

"Damn," Cid groans. "So they have Sora now?"

"Yeah, well, we got another problem too, y'know?" Rai says. "Who's tellin' Riku?" No one says a word and everyone looks between each other uncertainly.

Hayner swallows hard. "This one won't be easy to hear."

It's silent again for a moment. Suddenly, there's a quiet exhale and Tifa's eyes slowly open. She rubs her neck as she winces and sits up slowly. Yuffie's face lights up and she immediately throws her arms around her friend, hugging her tightly. Tifa, who is still reorienting herself, is taken aback but soon returns the gesture. Everyone inwardly sighs in relief.

"You ok?" Hayner asks.

Tifa looks up at him with a small smile. "Yeah, I think so. Is everyone else alright?"

Hayner replies solemnly, "We don't know."

* * *

When I wake up, I find myself in complete darkness. The floor beneath me is rocky and hard and the air is cold as ice. I shiver and stand up, taking a few tentative steps. I reach out in front of me to feel if there's anything there. All I touch is doubt and uncertainty.

Then an idea strikes me. I call my sword to my hand. Its soft glow appears and penetrates the darkness around me like a beacon. I glance around the space. I'm in a prison cell. The walls, floor, and ceiling are all made of stone and iron bars block any escape. Aside from myself, there's absolutely nothing else in the enclosed area.

I walk over to the bars that are keeping me in. I stick an arm out into the hallway, testing the width of the spaces between them. There's no way I could squeeze through. I rear back and take a swing at them with my sword. The metal clangs loudly and sparks fly through the pitch darkness. Aside from that, nothing happens.

I grumble. With one last hope, I close my eyes and focus my energy. In my mind, I try to piece together a Corridor that leads to me. I hit a dead end and lose it. No matter how hard I try, I can't call forth any sort of portal.

I growl in frustration and pound a wall, wincing at the impact. I sigh and slump down onto the cell floor, leaning back against the rough, uncomfortable wall. A voice whispers, "Psst! Katie, is that you?"

"Sora?" I ask confusedly, turning toward the wall.

"So you're ok? They didn't hurt you?" he asks from the cell next door.

"Yeah, I seem to be intact," I reply. "Are you alright too?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," he answers. "Do you have any idea where we are?"

"Unfortunately, we seem to be in some sort of dungeon," I say grimly. "We're probably in the basement of the castle."

"Crap."

"I know. This doesn't look good. I can't even open a Corridor here," I explain. "It's like an area with no passageways leading in or out. It's a void zone."

"What do we do now?"

"I don't know. I'm thinking."

"What if we just bust out? Maybe we could make it far enough for you to open a Corridor."

"Already tried that," I chuckle. "The bars to these cells won't give. Maybe magic would work, though."

"Lemme try it. Hold on."

I hear footsteps and then a pause. "Firaga!" Sora cries. The whir of flames echoes through the damp dungeon and the glow of embers casts shadows upon the hallway before fading away.

"No use," Sora growls. "There's some sort of barrier."

"Well…we'll think of something," I say.

"Yeah…" I hear shuffling as Sora sits down by the wall again. I sigh and look skyward, only to have nothingness stare me in the face. We both sit there silently for a minute. The light around my sword grows dimmer and dimmer until it goes out completely and I'm in the dark again. I hardly notice.

Sora's voice travels through the wall again. "So how long have you known Riku anyway?"

I think for a moment, trying to get my story straight. I stay as broad as possible. "Not too long, I guess. Have you known him awhile?"

"Yeah," Sora replies. "My whole life. We've been best friends for as long as I can remember."

"That's cool," I smile. "He's a good friend."

"Yeah, he is. I hope he doesn't find out we're here. Knowing Riku, he'll try to save us and just wind up in even more trouble!" Sora laughs but I remain quiet. I curl up into a tight ball and bury my face in my arms. Sora becomes worried about the silence.

"Katie? You ok?"

"I'm sorry," I choke out. "I'm so sorry. For everything. It's all my fault."

"Hey, don't say that," Sora demands. "It's not your fault we're stuck here. It's Organization XIII's."

Sure, it was stupid of me not to realize that my friends weren't protected from the Nobodies' senses, but it wasn't just that. I was talking about _everything._ It wasn't the Organization's fault that I'm a reckless fighter and got my heart ripped out, breaking all of my friends' hearts in the process. It wasn't the Organization's fault that I couldn't save Seifer and Leon and Kaden. It wasn't the Organization's fault that I was too clingy and selfish to leave Roxas in Radiant Garden when I had the chance and ruined my friends' lives because of it. No. That was my fault.

"Listen," Sora continues. "Without you, we wouldn't have even known that Kairi's memories were here and we _never _could have made it that far into the castle without you. We would still be stuck at the beginning of the road, with no clues or leads or anything. You helped us a lot."

I don't say anything. There's nothing to say. He doesn't remember me or anything I did, and maybe it's best that he doesn't. I try so hard to hold myself together, but finally, I break. I start sobbing into my own arms and I can't stop.

"Katie, are you crying?" Sora asks worriedly. "I'm sorry. Did I say something wrong?"

"No," I manage between tears. "It's not you."

"It's something else?" he says quietly. I nod and sniffle loudly without realizing that he can't see me. "Is there anything I can do?" he coaxes.

I inhale deeply, trying to calm myself down. "I don't know," I reply as the river flowing down my face slowly diminishes into a stream. "Sometimes, you just need someone to hold you. And no one's there, y'know?"

"Yeah," is all he says. We both become quiet again. The only noise is an occasional sniffle that still escapes from me. I wipe my face forcefully, trying to dry my cheeks off and brush away the tears that are still welled up in my eyes. We sit back-to-back in the dark with only a few feet of stone between us, yet I feel like we're a world apart.

I place my hand on the wall. Even though I know he's not, I pretend Sora is doing the same thing in his cell and our palms are touching in our hearts.


	16. Chapter 15

I wake up to the sound of a metal door creaking open. At first, I think I'm dreaming, but then I hear footsteps descending toward me and a faint light slowly creeps across the hallway of the dungeon. I jerk up to a kneeling position.

"Sora!" I hiss. "Are you awake?"

"Huh?" he murmurs sleepily from the other side of the wall. Then he gasps.

"What's wrong?" I ask urgently.

Sora's voice isn't the one to answer. Instead, a deep, gruff voice begins speaking. "Hello, Keybearer. Are you enjoying your stay?" I scramble over to the bars of my cell, peering between them toward Sora's cell. Standing there is the blue-haired member that I ran into during my first castle adventure. Some sort of magic floats near him, a glowing orb to light up the way.

"What do you want?" I hear Sora yell.

The Nobody smiles and the light glows eerily around his face. "The Superior would like to meet you."

"Leave him alone!" I cry.

The Organization member briefly turns my way. "I don't believe this concerns you."

"What are you gonna do with him?" I demand.

The man answers as he reaches for a device next to the entrance of Sora's cell. "Again, I don't believe that concerns you." He presses some sort of button and a fizzle of electricity sounds through the entire dungeon. Sora yelps in pain and a thud follows.

"What did you do?" I shout. "Sora! SORA!"

The Nobody holds a hand in front of the door to the cell. It unlocks itself and swings open. He walks in and comes back out with an unconscious Sora slung over his shoulder. I start swearing and turning hysterical but the member ignores me. He carries Sora up the stairs and out of the dungeon, taking the light with him. I pound on the walls and continue to scream profanities long after he's gone.

Eventually, I wear myself out. I weakly hit the wall with my fist and crumple to the ground, shaking. I curl up as tightly as I can, coughing and trying to ignore my sore throat. Bitter silence slowly settles in. The darkness strangles me and there's no one to talk to but myself. I messed everything up. Again.

Loneliness settles into my gut and weighs me down like a ton of bricks. My tears keep me company.

* * *

The dungeon is filling up. My mission will start again soon. We're getting closer to completing our goal. I'm getting closer to remembering.

The Superior just called a meeting for the whole Organization XIII. He said it's very important. I have to go now.

* * *

No one else has come down here since Sora was taken away. I don't even know how long ago that was. It could have been a few hours. It could have been a day. I have no idea.

The silence is driving me insane and I'm hungry beyond belief. I haven't eaten since I was in Twilight Town. That must have been at least a day ago. I have no sense of time here. Maybe it's been a couple days. I don't know. Makes me wonder if anyone is trying to save me.

The only one who could find me is probably Riku. The only reason he would come save me, though, is so that he can kill me himself. He must be so pissed at me.

I'm sorry, Riku. I screwed up so badly.

* * *

The meeting was about the other Keybearer. The Organization finally has him. Now we can work twice as quickly. The Superior said that everything is falling into place. Organization XIII will accomplish its goal soon. The Superior won't tolerate any lost time or mistakes.

If we see anyone in the castle who isn't a Nobody, we are instructed to kill them on sight.

* * *

I lay on the stone floor of my cell, which isn't terribly comfortable, but I don't have many options. I rest my hands behind my head and stare up into the blackness. I'm thinking about everything that's happened in the last two years. All of this started with a game, a simple game. We were just playing back on the island like we always did. Then everything went to hell. How could something so innocent cause so much pain?

I still remember my first step into that door, the portal to Traverse Town. That tunnel was as dark as the room I'm in now. I was so scared. I didn't know what was happening or what I could do about it. In a way, I had come all this way to be stuck in the same place. I'm still surrounded by darkness and I'm still scared out of my mind. I have no idea what I can do or even _if _I can do anything to help Sora and the others.

Somehow, though, I kept going. The door on the island closed behind me and I couldn't go back. I had no choice but to gather my courage and walk forward. Things certainly weren't easier once I found my way into the light, but a whole world of possibilities was waiting for me. If I had decided to sit there in the dark and not keep walking, I never would have gotten anywhere. For all I know, I'd still be sitting there right now.

My sword starts to give off a stronger glow as it lies on the ground next to me. I grip it tightly and stand up. I begin searching for a way out. I cast its light toward the ceiling, searching for a vent or passageway of some sort. There doesn't seem to be anything helpful. I try to break out again, smashing and clanging the blade against the iron bars in front of me. It does no good.

I pause as an idea slowly creeps into my head. I turn toward the back of the cell. Maybe I can't break out of the front, but the other walls have to lead somewhere too. I walk to the back wall and run my hand along the rough, ice-cold surface. It seems pretty solid but I don't have many other options.

I take a deep breath. Gathering my strength, I let out a cry and jab my sword into the wall. It makes a loud grating noise and the force of the blow makes my arm buckle. A small piece of stone chips off, but that's about it.

Determined not to give up, I close my eyes and focus on a new type of energy other than physical power. I remember the training Leon gave me on magic. I never managed to master magic or even cast a decent spell, but I would have to try.

I let my mind empty of all thoughts and allow the elements to surface within me. I try to push away any fears about failing and solely focus on the task at hand. When I feel the power reach its peak, I open my eyes and cry, "Thunder!"

The wall stares me in the face as the room remains hollow and calm. I grit my teeth, trying not to explode in frustration. I quickly romp over to the iron bars of the cell. I have one option left. I saw the Organization member use some sort of mechanism for Sora's cell. Maybe there's a button there that unlocks the doors.

I press my face to the bars, peering out as far as I can. I see the mechanism by my cell. It only has a few buttons. I reach my hand between two of the bars and stretch toward the device as far as I can. I strain to reach far enough to press it. Finally, I hit the first button. It clicks in and my body surges with electricity. I begin to slump to the ground as everything fades away.

* * *

_"What?"_ Riku pounds his fist down on the table in the mansion's entryway. The sound thunders through the space and the others cringe. "How could you let this happen?"

"Riku, I'm sorry, man," Hayner says quietly.

"Why the hell did you go in there without telling me?" he cries. "Do you realize it's over now? There's nothing else we can do!"

"Riku, stop it," Yuffie cuts in. "It's not over. We can do _something!_"

"_We?_" Riku says incredulously. "There's no 'we.' I'm going in alone."

"Oh, yeah! All of us couldn't handle it as a group, so sending you alone will _ensure _your safety!"

"At least I know what I'm doing," he replies, putting his leather gloves on.

"That doesn't mean you can fight all of Organization XIII on your own," Yuffie points out.

"I won't have to fight them."

"How can you be so sure?"

Riku doesn't answer. Instead, he opens a Corridor and readies to step through.

"Riku, maybe we should think this through a little," Hayner suggests nervously. Rai grimly agrees.

"At least have a plan going in there," Yuffie says.

"I do," he answers, taking a step toward the dark portal beside him.

Yuffie grabs him by the shoulder to stop him. "And that would be…?" He doesn't answer. Quickly slipping out of the ninja's grasp, he disappears down the Corridor and closes it before anyone can follow, entering oblivion on his own.

* * *

Hope you liked it! Please tell me how I did: comments, questions, critiques, etc. Serious stuff is gonna go down if you can't already tell XD The story basically snowballs from here and the action doesn't stop until the end, so brace yourself, because we've still got a long, crazy ride ahead of us! Be watching for the next chapter next weekend. Thanks so much for everyone who reads this and has been a support in my writing career! It means alot :)


	17. Chapter 16

A/N: Sorry, I forgot to update today until now! I've been very busy and it completely slipped my mind -_- anyway, enjoy!

* * *

The mission began again today. The other Keybearer was there this time. Sora. At first, he refused to help release the prisoners' hearts. XII electrocuted him every time he didn't cooperate. I was afraid she was going to kill him because he still wouldn't do anything even after he had been shocked a bunch of times but VII intervened before that happened. VII said something about destroying someone's memories if Sora didn't cooperate. After that, Sora finally started to work.

The dungeons are a lot quieter now than they were this morning.

I'm on castle patrol now. I'm supposed to patrol the eastern second-floor corridors. I walk back and forth between the halls, watching closely for intruders.

Kill on sight. Kill on sight. Kill on sight. Kill on sight. Kill on sight. Kill on sight…

* * *

I awake in a rather uncomfortable position in my cell. My face is shoved against the bars, my arm droops out into the hallway, and I'm folded nearly in half like a sleeping baby, resting on my knees while my rear end sticks up into the air.

Wincing at my sore muscles, I awkwardly slide backwards and stand up. I crack my neck and roll my shoulders to loosen myself out. Ok, so the first button is the electric shock. Good to know. I hope none of the members came down while I was unconscious. Humiliation in the face of the enemy is very degrading.

Co's voice creeps into my head. _"You will be needed soon."_

I roll my eyes. "Yeah, I'm working on it. It would be nice if you actually stuck around for a while or, like, cared to tell me that we were gonna get caught before we actually did." I peer toward the control panel again, deciding which button to try next. "Maybe you could be a little more helpful this time around and tell me how I can break out of here."

_"You cannot break out."_

"Then what can I do?" I ask. "Is there a way to unlock the door?"

_"Only a Nobody can open these cells."_

"Ok. Well, you're a Nobody, aren't you?"

_"In theory, yes."_

"So can you open it?"

_"Yes."_

I groan. "Damn you, Co! Why didn't you say that before?!"

_"You found determination inside of yourself, a determination that you will need for the upcoming battles. Whether or not the escape was possible on your own was irrelevant." _He materializes in front of the cell and holds out one of his strange, wispy hands. The entrance makes a clicking sound and pops open by itself. I step out into the hallway.

"I can muster up plenty of determination when I need to. You should've stopped them from ambushing us. Now they have Sora and they're probably torturing him. Or worse." I begin to ascend the stairs out of the dungeon. "Where is he?" I demand as Co swiftly follows behind me.

_"He has a room on the other side of the castle."_

"Tell me how to get there." I emerge from the dungeon to find myself in a long hallway ending in an ominous, purplish-red portal. I walk to the end of the hallway and stand before it. "Let me guess. We go through that thing first." I turn to face Co. "Right?" Co doesn't answer. "Ok, fine." I turn back to the swirling mass and step through.

We end up in a large white room, much like every other one in the castle. I know I'll never be able to navigate the maze-like building on my own. "Ok, which way is Sora's room?"

Co stands still as a post. _"I cannot lead you to the Keybearer right now."_

I grit my teeth, trying to hold my composure. "And why not?"

_"There is something you must see first. Follow me." _A Corridor of Darkness opens next to Co. I hesitate for a moment, staring the Nobody down. I want to get to Sora as soon as possible, and although Co is usually right when it's acting wise and all-knowing, there have also been times when I would argue that Co's decision wasn't the right one. But the troublesome situations Co got me into always ended up benefiting me somehow, even if it was just discovering little bits of information. But he let Sora be captured. Was there really a benefit to that, other than me gaining my confidence back? I'm not sure yet. It seems like an awfully large price to pay for something so trivial.

Co waits patiently. I finally give in. "Alright, alright, I'll go." I reluctantly walk toward the Corridor.

_"Once you take the next step, Master, there is no turning back."_

I roll my eyes. "You're leading me into mortal danger again, aren't you?"

_"The answers you seek lie in this room, though they will not be easy to bear. Once you take the next step along your path, nothing will be the same again."_

I pause. "What are you saying?"

_"Are you prepared, Master?"_

"To do what?"

_"To face the truth."_

* * *

The room we enter after exiting Co's Corridor is dark and off-putting. The only light is the glow from Kingdom Hearts that travels through the small window on the far side of the room and leaves a patch of white light on the floor. There are no doors in or out of the room. The only furnishing is a short, stone pedestal in the middle of the room. It has an indent in its top which holds a shallow pool of water.

I frown. "Where are we?"

_"The Well of Foresight," _Co answers, walking toward the window. His footsteps make no sound, yet they cause a hollow echo to whisper faintly through the air. _"This is the key to the world and the key to seeing. From here, one may view any part of this empty world that one wishes to see. Any piece of the city, any room of the castle. Even any being."_ The Nobody stops walking once it reaches the patch of light trickling in from the window. It turns to face me. Its clothing shines eerily as the moonlight seemingly passes through it. It casts no shadow.

_"Come," _Co commands. I begin to walk, watching the warrior's blank stare. I start to walk around the well in the center like Co did.

_"Stop," _Co says quickly, one hand shooting out in front of it. I halt before the pedestal and glance down warily at it before looking at Co again. Its hand flips upward and its fingers slowly beckon me forward. _"Bring it with you."_

I raise an eyebrow questioningly but do as I'm told. Hunching down, I push the stone font toward Co, sliding it across the floor. The sound of the friction eerily penetrates the silence and somehow makes the room seem even emptier. When it rests before Co, I stand upright again.

"Ok, so this lets me see anything on this world. But what's the price?" I ask. "There's always a catch."

_"Seeing is its own price."_

Co's words ring through me and make my heart tremble. "I don't like this." I begin to step backward.

_"Don't run."_

My foot freezes and I slowly bring it back to its place on the floor. I hesitantly gaze back down into the still pool of water. Co lifts a spindly hand above the water. It lowers one finger down to the surface, touching the reflection of Kingdom Hearts that's painted there. A single ripple flows outward and the image on the water disappears. A new image floats to the surface and reveals itself. I bend closer, watching the scene play out before me.

I see Sora in a dungeon again, but this time he isn't in the cell. A group of shivering, terrified people are. The blue-haired Nobody from earlier stands next to him. The member waves his hand in front of the door and it opens. Sora steps into the cell and the family cowers together. With slight hesitation, Sora summons his Keyblade and draws it backwards.

I grip the side of the well in horror. "What is he doing?" I whisper hoarsely. I watch as the Keyblade plunges into the child's chest. I wince and avert my eyes as a scream sounds out from the reflection. A tear immediately falls down my face. "I don't…understand…" I say, shaking and trying to forget what I just saw. I uncertainly look back into the well.

Co doesn't say anything, only touches the water again to call up a new image. This one shows a hooded figure appearing in the Superior's room. It reaches up and lowers its hood.

I bend forward, eyes shooting open. "Riku?"

* * *

Riku stands behind the Superior, a stone-cold expression on his face. The Superior turns slowly from the large glass wall that serves as a window in his room. He meets eyes with the silver-haired boy and waits for him to speak. Riku takes a deep breath.

"I'm here for Kairi's memories," he states firmly.

The Superior smiles. "Is that so? And why should I give them to you?"

"You know why," Riku growls. "We had a deal."

"Indeed. But you've hardly upheld your end of the bargain."

"You got what you wanted!"

The Superior glowers down upon Riku, his eyes filled with manipulative glee. "Yes. But the deal was, you bring the Keybearer to us. Only then would I release the girl's memories to you. If he came of his own will, I don't see your place in any of this."

Riku's anger grows. "It doesn't matter! You have Sora! You don't need her anymore!"

"Actually, she's the reason the Keybearer is so helpful," the Superior explains. "You see, he believes that she'll be terminated if he doesn't comply with our orders. He's working for us to save her."

"You monster!" Riku spits, drawing Soul Eater.

"Aah, aah, ahh. I wouldn't do that," the Nobody advises. "Fighting me would only result in your death. And any attempt to save your friends would, coincidentally, also result in your death. The other members are all ordered to kill intruders. And you're an intruder now, _Riku._" He emphasizes Riku's name, his eyes boring into the teens' as he says it. Riku stares the Superior down, teeth bared, his options racing through his head. Finally, he breaks eye contact, staring in defeat at the ground.

"I'll go in her place." His voice drops nearly to a whisper. "If you let Kairi's memories go, I'll work for you. I'll do whatever you want."

The Superior shows the slightest sign of surprise but hides it immediately. A grimace of power etches itself across his face. "She's really that important to you?"

Riku's fist shakes as he struggles in his enemy's mental grasp. "Yes. Just let her go."

"Very well," the Superior nods, calling up a Corridor. "Then your first assignment is to bring three more prisoners back to the dungeon. If anyone tries to stop you, kill them."

Riku's head shoots upward, but before he can protest, the Superior grips him by the arm and shoves him into the portal. "Don't disappoint me."

* * *

"No!" I cry, watching from the other room in disbelief. "Don't you dare go in her place, Riku! Co, we have to do something!"

_"Is that what your heart is telling you, or your instinct?"_

I glance up at my companion, fire raging in my eyes. "My heart _is _my instinct."

Co nods in acceptance. _"Good. Then go." _It opens a Corridor of Darkness beside me. I nod gratefully, then hurry through the dark hole to save my friend and three unsuspecting lives, and possibly many more.


	18. Chapter 17

_"Your first assignment is to bring three more prisoners back to the dungeon. If anyone tries to stop you, kill them."_

_Riku's head shoots upward, but before he can protest, the Superior grips him by the arm and shoves him into the portal. "Don't disappoint me."_

* * *

They say that if you want to defeat your enemy, you have to think like your enemy. If I were a power-hungry leader of an evil organization, where would I send Riku to do my bidding if I tossed him down a dark hole? Answer: I have no idea.

Organization XIII seems to hang out around Twilight Town a lot and that's where Co sent me, so I have to assume that he's here somewhere. I'm just not sure where, although there aren't a lot of options. I know he won't show his face around Cid or the others now that he's helping the Nobodies, so that eliminates any area near the mansion. But he also has to be somewhere with people since he's supposed to capture them.

I start by checking the second district of the town. It's farther from the mansion than the third district and it's also a largely populated area. When I arrive, there are quite a few people out and about but the streets clear out quickly as people run and hide in fear. I think I need a change of clothes.

After hiding my Organization XIII cloak in the Usual Spot, I set out again in my everyday attire. This time, I head toward the train station. There's no sign of Riku along the way or any sign of trouble at all. I expect him to be at the station itself, but when I make it up there, everything seems normal like the rest of the town. Riku is good at being stealthy but nothing in the atmosphere feels wrong either. It's just an ordinary day in Twilight Town. So where could he be?

The speaker above the ticket booth comes on. A nasally voice announces, "The train to Sunset Heights will be departing immediately. Repeat, the train to Sunset Heights is departing immediately."

Damn it! Sunset Heights! I can't believe I didn't think of that! If Riku isn't anywhere else in town, that's the only place left for me to check. I run outside and hide around the corner to make sure no one will see me. Then I call up a Corridor of Darkness to carry me to the other sector of Twilight Town.

I choose an alley as an exit point to avoid detection. Sunset Heights isn't very large so I start my search from the neighborhood closest to the train station and work my way out. As I walk briskly beside the streetcar track that runs the length of the entire district, I spot Yuffie wandering around the bottom of Sunset Hill. Before I can get her attention, I catch a glimpse of black disappearing swiftly around a corner. I pick up my pace gradually until I'm in a soft run, heading in the direction that I saw the black cloak. I listen for any screams or yells, but I hear nothing. I start to sprint.

I whip around the corner of a building onto a side street, breathing frantically. I scan the empty space. There's no sign of Riku. That's when the sound of footsteps reaches my ears and some children walk down the street towards me. I tense. There are three of them.

My instincts flare up like wildfire and I dash toward the kids as fast as I can. "Look out!" I cry, drawing my sword and leaping over their heads just as Riku pounces out of an alleyway. Upon seeing me, his eyes widen in shock and he draws his blade in the nick of time to guard against me. He stumbles backward incredulously. "Katie?"

I send my sword away, staring him down. "Don't worry, you don't need to explain anything."

The kids whimper and run away, but we hardly notice. Riku frowns and dispels his weapon as well. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about your meeting with the leader of Organization XIII. I heard everything."

Riku's eyes instantly display fear and shame. "But…how-"

I cut him off. "And to be honest, I thought you were joking. Agreeing to work for them so Kairi can have her memory back? Did it occur to you that you can't see her now anyway? And now she'll remember you and have to live with the fact that she can't see _you _and you're trapped there!" Riku looks down at the ground, searching for words that aren't there. "And what about Sora? You really made a deal to trade him for Kairi's memories?"

"I had no choice…"

"No choice?!"

"They were going to destroy her memory forever if I didn't bring him to them!"

"So you betray your best friend?!" The truth in my words stings and Riku flinches. "Look, I know what it's like to lose someone you care about and not have them recognize you. I do. But that doesn't mean you can create a void in everyone else."

"Katie…I-"

"Imagine him there. Every prisoner you bring back is another life he'll be forced to take. You know Sora. You really think his conscience can handle that? You may have lost the Kairi you had before but she was still there with you. And at least everyone else was there too, whether you let them in or not. They all remember you. Me? You were the only one I had left, Riku. And now you're gone."

He looks into my eyes, and for the first time, there's nothing mysterious or hidden about Riku. Everything is right there and everything is so true. He isn't crying but his expression is a collection of long-held tears. "Katie…I'm so sorry…" he whispers.

I can't hold his gaze. I glance to the side and my voice softens from the harsh tone it had before. "I didn't come here for an apology. I just wanted you to know what you were doing."

At that moment, Yuffie bursts out from around the corner, shuriken raised. She throws it but her face becomes a mask of confusion as she does. My heart jumps and automatically summons my sword to block the assault. The ninja star clangs against the metal of my blade and flies back to its owner's hand.

"What's going on?" Yuffie asks me. "Those kids said someone in a black cloak tried to hurt them but…you're not wearing yours. Was someone else here?"

Riku and Yuffie lock eyes for a moment, him freezing in fear and her trying to piece everything together. In an instant, Riku turns and runs, disappearing from sight. "Wait!" Yuffie calls, but he's already gone. She addresses me again. "What's going on?"

"Let's go back to the mansion. I'll explain everything there," I reply. "There's a lot that I need to tell all of you."

* * *

Riku is helping the Organization now. We were instructed not to kill him unless he tried to rebel. Everyone is turning to Organization XIII's side. We may not even have to patrol for intruders soon if no one is against us.

Now I'm wandering the city. It's late but I couldn't sleep. I've started to leave the castle every now and then when I have free time. The city is empty like the castle, but I like it. It's an escape from my usual routine. And it's a lot quieter than my room. Sora's room is next to mine, and a lot of nights, he cries. It always keeps me up. It's a strange sound to listen to. Natural, yet somehow out-of-place.

I wonder what it's like to feel guilt.

* * *

Yuffie seems wary and unsure of me, but she finally follows me through a Corridor back to the main part of Twilight Town. I take us to the woods. My plan is to run into Kairi before we reach the mansion but I'm not even sure if the Superior ever let her go, or if he did, where she could be. I mentally ask Co about her as Yuffie and I jog toward the mansion.

_"There is no need to go looking for fate," _Co replies in his usual mysterious way.

Before I can even wonder what that means, Yuffie and I arrive at the entrance gate in time to spot two Dusks slithering in the front door of the mansion. Yuffie doubles her speed and careens inside, me following closely on her tail. The Nobodies snake through the air toward the door in the right wing. Yuffie hurls one of her smaller ninja stars and takes out one of them. The other one shrieks in alarm and doubles back around to face us.

I yell and leap into the air, blade at the ready. I swing and miss as the crafty enemy weaves around me. I growl in frustration as I land. By the time I turn around and get ready for another attack, Yuffie has already destroyed the Nobody. I smirk in slight jealousy as I dismiss my weapon. "Nice shot."

She smiles smugly. "Thanks." Her face grows serious again. "We better check if there are other Nobodies in the mansion. We gotta make sure everyone is safe."

"Right," I nod. "You take the right side, I'll take the left?"

"Yuffie? Katie?" a voice calls from behind. It sounds familiar but I can't quite place it. We both turn to see a blonde teenage girl standing in the front doorway. I immediately recognize her from the castle as "Naminé", or Kairi's lost memories.

"Kairi?" I gape. I run over to her in disbelief. "Kairi! You're ok!"

"Katie!" she exclaims. We have our girly-girl reunion moment with hugs and bouncy voices. Kairi is as animated as ever. "I had no idea what happened to you or anyone! I didn't even know if anyone else was still alive!"

"Geez, what happened to you?" I ask. "Did you end up on the Organization's world too?"

"Too? Is that where _you_ were? How did you escape?"

"Wait a minute," Yuffie cuts in, watching us in puzzlement. "Kairi, you know her?"

Kairi lets out a confused chuckle. "What? Stop teasing, Yuffie."

I smile awkwardly. "Umm…actually, she means it."

"Huh?"

"Well, Riku couldn't have introduced you to her, could he?" Yuffie asks me. "I didn't think you had known each other very long."

"No…Riku didn't introduce me."

"Then how did you meet?"

"Guys, stop it," Kairi orders. "You're weirding me out."

"They don't remember me, Kairi," I explain. "None of them. Just you and Riku."

"Woah, what?" Yuffie asks, gaping. "What is going on here?"

I sigh. Here comes the explanation. "You remember that huge blast? The one that Roxas caused as the universe was collapsing?"

"Yeah, but how the hell do you know about-"

"I was there. I was in the final battle with you. That blast made everyone forget me, but I fought with you and Tifa and Hayner and Sora and everyone else. And I was there after Leon died."

Yuffie starts shaking her head, frowning in disbelief. "No, no, you don't know him. You can't know him."

"I do, Yuffie. He's the one who taught me to fight. Why do you think I'm so good?" I grin. "And you helped me train too, back in Traverse Town. You and Merlin were the first people I met there."

"You knew her before you even knew me," Kairi adds gently, trying to help Yuffie recall everything she forgot.

"That's impossible," Yuffie keeps denying the truth. "I…I don't remember you at all. In the graveyard…it was just Leon and Tifa and me. And you were never in Traverse Town. Leon only trained Hayner, Seifer, and Rai."

"And how did they get there?"

Yuffie squirms, trying so hard to remember something that isn't there. "They just…showed up, I think. I don't know. I can't remember."

"You can't remember because I brought them there. You can't remember me. Every memory you have of me is gone."

Yuffie steps backward, trying to take everything in. "I don't…I…that's crazy."

"Please, Yuffie. You have to believe me. I know you can't remember, but I'm telling you the truth. I need you guys on my side."

"She's right, Yuffie," Kairi adds. "You've known her for two years now."

Yuffie keeps opening her mouth to say something, but then stopping, groaning in frustration. "Can we just go talk to everyone else? I don't even know what to think."

"Sure," I nod. "Let's give Kairi her memories back first, though."

"What?" Kairi exclaims in shock. "You just said I didn't lose my memories!"

"Well…you _are_ the memories…" I scratch my head uncomfortably. "Your memories kinda separated from you…you're actually in there." I gesture toward the room on the left side of the mansion where the real Kairi is.

"This is too weird," Kairi grimaces.

"I know. Just follow me." We all head up to Kairi's room. Both Kairi and "Naminé" are perplexed upon seeing each other but Kairi's memories return to Kairi and our old friend returns to normal.

"Glad to have you back," I smile.

Kairi sighs in relief. "Good to be back. So what have I missed?"

I chuckle nervously. "Well..."


	19. Chapter 18

A/N: Hello all! Just wanted to say hi and let you know that I really wanted to edit this chapter more before I posted it, but I can't right now. Life is pretty stressful and I'm super, super busy with schoolwork and activites and all that stuff, so I just don't have time to edit this. So sorry if the first scene is really short and abrupt. Anyway, hope you enjoy it for what it is and stay tuned! Next chapter is gonna be even more awesome! (At least I think so.)

* * *

I stare at the ice cream bar in my hand as it slowly starts to liquefy. I lick it before it drips onto my skin and oozes between my fingers. The salt stings at my tongue. The whole thing is meant to be sweet, enjoyable, yet it has a bitter side too. And nevertheless, I want more. What a funny thing life is.

We all sit silently on the wall in the shopping district, each with a bar of sea salt ice cream. Me, Hayner, Tifa, Yuffie, Rai, Cid, and Kairi. The gang, or what's left of it. The ice cream is merely a distraction while everyone absorbs the situation. They know everything now. I told them about Organization XIII's plan, about Riku, about Roxas, about me. It's a lot to take in at once, but I have to keep my fingers crossed that they believe me. But then again, how could I make that all up?

I can feel the unease in the air so I focus on eating. I let the cool treat melt in my mouth and then slip down my throat like a refreshing drink on a summer day. The creamy, salty flavor lingers in my mouth. The bar is long gone by the time anyone speaks.

"So…" Rai begins nervously. "What does everyone think?"

Hayner is the first to answer. "I kept thinking back to that first adventure we all had together. There are so many gaps in my memory. Like, how we heard about the trouble in the first place, how we ended up in Traverse Town, who actually defeated Vanitas during the final battle. There are some things that I just can't recall."

"Me too, y'know?" Rai admits.

"So, I think we have to believe Katie," Hayner continues. "After all, she knew Seifer's and Merlin's and Leon's names without us ever mentioning them. How else could she have known them?"

"I think ya got a point there," Cid pipes up.

"What about Riku? He could've explained everything to her," Yuffie suggests.

"But that doesn't explain the memory gaps," Hayner frowns.

"I guess it does make sense," Yuffie admits unwillingly. "It's just weird to think about."

Tifa, who is sitting next to me, turns with a smile. "We may not remember what you did for us in the past, but you're here now and you've already helped us so much. Welcome back to the group, Katie."

I grin, hoping there aren't tears forming in my eyes. "Thanks, guys."

* * *

"Welcome back," the Superior sneers as Riku steps anxiously into the Nobody's office. "I called you here on account of your mission."

"I did complete it," Riku tells the towering leader. "I brought three people back. They're in the dungeon right now. Number VII was even there to make sure."

"I understand that," the Superior continues. "But you were thwarted in your first attempt, were you not?"

Riku grits his teeth. "…Yes."

The Nobody stares the young teen down, his golden eyes boring into him. "By your own friend, correct?"

"What do you want?" Riku growls under his breath.

"The girl is a problem," he concludes, turning his back on Riku and staring out the window. "Should she get in your way again, you have orders to destroy her. That's all. You may leave now. Make sure to report to me tomorrow morning for your next mission."

Riku's face becomes pained and he clenches his jaw as he turns toward the door. "One more thing," the Superior adds, back still turned to the silver-haired boy. "You may want to let go of all those emotions. They can be rather hindering."

Without responding, Riku yanks the door open and briskly walks out of the room.

* * *

I've been having the same dream a lot lately. It's always the same memory. The one memory I have from before Organization XIII.

There's a town but it's empty, like the one outside of the castle. The houses are broken down and the citizens are all gone. The only people left are in a small group in front of me, but I'm not sure who they are. I just know that they're yelling and something is happening.

I made a promise. I can't remember what it was or who I made it to, but I know I did. I have that memory. I didn't make it up. I couldn't have. It feels too real.

But what was it? Who was it for? No matter how hard I try, I can't pull up a clear image of their face or what I said to them.

Why can't I remember?

* * *

"Well, the only question now is what to do next," Yuffie sighs.

"What about Roxas?" Hayner asks desperately. "You said he was alive, right, Katie? We gotta bring him back here somehow."

"It's not that simple, Hayner," I reply quietly.

"I know it's not! I know he lost his memory, but we did too, and you still convinced us to join your side, right?"

"You guys only forgot about me. Roxas doesn't remember anything at all. His life in Organization XIII is all he knows now."

"But-!"

"Listen, we'll think of something," Cid assures him. "But we gotta figure out what's best for everyone too. How the heck are we gonna stop the Organization from kidnapping more innocent people? That's priority number one right now."

"Patrol isn't enough anymore." Yuffie pounds her fist angrily against the cobblestone wall beneath her. "There are too many of them."

"We've gotta find a way to take out the members one-by-one," Tifa decides. "We know we can't fight them all at once, but we can defeat one of them at a time. And the fewer members there are, the less people they can kidnap."

Hayner stands and pounds his fist into his hand. "And the fewer Nobodies there are to protect their leader!"

"And then we go in for the kill," Cid finishes for them, sighing and looking upward. "Another wild hurrah, huh?"

"How are we gonna flush out the Organization members though?" Hayner wonders. "Just keep patrolling and wait for them to show up?"

"You're right. That could take forever," Tifa admits. "We don't have a lot of time. Kingdom Hearts is probably almost complete as it is."

"Then we draw them here," I declare. "We don't need all of them to show up. We just need one of them and the rest will follow."

"What do you mean?" Kairi asks as the others cock their heads.

I grin mischievously. "If we take Riku back, he'll definitely be on the Organization's wanted list. They'll come after him and then the hunters become the hunted."

"Sounds dandy, but how exactly are we gonna get Riku back?" Cid questions.

"Leave that to me."

* * *

After dinner and a rather uneventful evening patrol, we all hit the sack for the night. The guys and girls have quarters on separate sides of the mansion, so Tifa, Yuffie, and Kairi are my company for the night. The rooms each have two beds so Kairi and I share a room for the night while Tifa and Yuffie take the other. I pretend to drift off until I'm positive that Kairi is asleep.

I silently slide out of my bed and tread across the carpeted floor. I purposely left the door to our room slightly ajar so that it makes almost no noise when I open it. I slip out into the hallway and tiptoe toward the main sector of the mansion.

I'm halfway down the hall when I hear someone's voice. It whispers, "Katie?" I turn around to see Yuffie only ten feet behind me. "Where are you going?" she asks, so quiet that I can hardly hear her.

"Someone's gotta go bring Riku back. There would've been a big fuss if I told everyone that I was going alone."

"You're not," she replies. "I'm going with you."

"There's only one of these cloaks, Yuffie," I tell her, tugging on my sleeve for emphasis. "You remember what happened last time."

"Yeah, well, I can't just let you go in there alone. What if something happens to you?"

"I'll be fine. I'll be super careful. And if something happens, I promise I'll get out of there right away, with or without Riku, ok?"

She glares at me, hesitant to answer. "What's your plan going in there?"

"I know where to find him," I explain. "I'll get in, grab him, and get out." She still seems uncertain. "Look, Yuffie. We don't have much choice here."

"Yes we do," she persists. "There are, like, seven of us!"

"You really wanna send one of them in there alone?"

"_You're_ going in there alone," she points out. "Why is it any different?"

"Because you can afford to lose someone that you don't remember." With that, I turn away and walk quickly down the hall.

"Can I?" she whispers softly. I pretend I didn't hear her as I disappear down a Corridor.

* * *

I heard Roxas leave his room last night. He often leaves at late hours, so I wouldn't have found it very strange.

Except that he never came back.


	20. Chapter 19

The rain falls down in thick, heavy drops. The sound of hollowness thuds against my hood and echoes through my ears. The rain, my footsteps, and the silence sound the same as they always do, but something feels different. A dark anxiety clutches at my gut.

_Premonitions._

The buildings to my right vanish and leave open space. I examine the new surroundings. Memory's Skyscraper looms over the area, keeping a silent vigil.

A new sound enters the atmosphere. Fresh footsteps. I glance to the side, peering through the veil of water dripping down in front of my face. Another cloaked figure stands across the empty lot. It steps out from behind Memory's Skyscraper. The darkness obscuring its face bores into me.

We both remain completely still, neither of us saying a word. The ripples on the puddles beneath us reach out to the edges of reality and become a blur, almost like a dream. Somehow, my heart remains calm.

"You're her…aren't you?" His voice drifts across the storm-ridden plain. Familiarity jolts through me like electricity through water. Quick. Powerful.

I step forward, pulling my hood back to reveal my face. The rain longingly greets me.

"Roxas."

The figure moves, walking toward me like a ghost on a thundering sea. He stops a distance away from me and the staredown continues.

"How do you know that name? Who are you?"

I remove my gloves. One touch. That's all it will take.

But I'm not sure…

"You really don't remember, do you?"

"What does that mean?"

…if I'm ready.

Rain patters along the blacktop. I don't answer him.

A break in the rhythm of the rain occurs. Water meets cold metal. The Keyblade waits ominously in the night.

"You know something about my past."

Energy courses through me.

"What do you want to know?"

Like lightning, his feet launch him forward. The key fixes itself in a position to kill.

"I already asked you!"

It swings. The faint light from the skyscraper reflects through the water on the blade. I zip to the side.

"How do you know me? What do you know about my past?"

The key strikes from above. I weave away and distance myself.

"I can't tell you that."

The Keyblade is hurled and it careens for my face, spiraling through the air like a raging tempest. I duck and let destruction unleash itself behind me. The Keyblade shatters a long-forgotten window. The image of Roxas' face on the glass breaks apart, separating from itself. The rain keeps its steady rhythm and watches silently.

"Why not?!"

I straighten, letting the water drip down my cloak and fall to the ground.

"You won't believe me."

The Keyblade returns to its wielder's hand. Its aura of power resonates against the darkness. The end of its blade points threateningly at me.

"Enough with the riddles! I made a promise to someone and I intend to keep it! And right now, you're the only one standing between me and my ability to do that! I need to know everything!"

My limbs become ice. Movement halts. I can do nothing but stare and listen to my heart beating in my chest.

"What…did you say?"

Cutting silence. The rain to fill it in.

"A promise? What was it?! What was the promise you made?!"

Could it be the same promise? How could it not be?

Anger fills his eyes again. "I'm asking the questions here!"

The city lights up for an instant as lightning flashes and thunder cracks like a whip above our heads. My sword defends me as my foe descends. Our two blades meet and lock together in combat. Metal sings out to accompany the rhythm of the sky's tears.

"You can't remember anything? Nothing at all?"

Lightning strikes. It illuminates his face and fury exudes from his features as our weapons struggle against each other. His eyes penetrate through my mask of confidence.

"Shut up! What do you know about my past?! Tell me!"

Anger crushes against me and threatens to destroy me. I struggle under its weight as the Keyblade presses harder and harder, driving me backwards.

"You don't even remember who you were talking to?"

"Stop avoiding the question!"

Jab. Near miss. My heart's speed quickens.

"'Cause I remember! I remember who you were talking to and exactly what you said!"

Slice. The outer fabric of my cloak frays. The rain shivers in suspense.

"You were there?!"

Control flees. The torrent ebbs inside of me and I retaliate. The key is forced to defend itself.

"Of course I was there!"

I strike furiously. The force catches him by surprise. Offense reverts to defense, then back again.

"So why won't you tell me what happened?!"

My bare hand flexes, still looking for the right opportunity. A million emotions well inside of me and I can't sort them out. Thunder rolls through the sky again.

"Fine. You wanna know the truth? I'm the one you made that promise to!"

Wide-eyed stares as water pounds quickly against the earth.

_The chaos. The screaming. The utter fear._

_ "I'll find a way back to you. I promise."_

_ Blinding light. And then nothing but darkness._

My teeth clench tight. Tears trickle down and become one with the rain. I stare at my friend, now a complete stranger to me. But I don't even see him. I don't see his face or his expression. I only see the key and the monster it's created. This battle is solely between me and the Keyblade. Me and that cursed Keyblade…

"But it doesn't matter now, because we can't go back! The Roxas I know is gone! And even if I give everyone their memories back, I'm gonna die anyway, and a lot of other people I love probably will too and none of this would have happened if it weren't for you! It's all _your FAULT!"_

My scream resonates with the clank of metal between sword and key. The key's wielder stumbles backwards and braces himself as I attack again and again. The key rings out emptily every time I strike its ice-cold heart.

"You took everything! The moment you appeared on our island, you sentenced us all to death! The worlds needed heroes, but you didn't just choose Sora and Roxas! You chose all of us! Every time they were hurt, we died inside too! And all for what?! Look at the worlds now! You think you're the universe's salvation?! You're our damnation! You tore apart families and destroyed cities! And now you've handed over the heart of the entire universe to the hands of the power-hungry and the greedy, the very people you sought to destroy! You've failed! It's too late for you to save any of us now!"

I rip through the pain inside. My sword slashes through the empty air, shining into the darkness with its last bit of strength. Nothingness is all that stands before me. I scan the area for my foe.

A feeling calls my attention upward. I look to the peak of Memory's Skyscraper. Roxas stands atop it, watching the city from above.

This ends now.

I spring through the air and whip around a pole that juts out from the building, catapulting myself upward. I dash along the steely surface of the skyscraper, defying the binding laws of the universe.

He jumps. Distance diminishes between us. The Keyblade draws closer. All focus on that one object. Even the rain leaves my ears for a moment.

We cross.

My sword lashes out. The key dances around the blade and Roxas twists and weaves through the assault. I growl and push off of the skyscraper, flipping backwards to fall and land on the ground. The Keyblade already waits for me.

I rush forward, launching an all-out offensive before the key can even strike. The sound of metal rings out loudly through the night, blow after blow. I have no control of my actions anymore. I fight with pure rage.

Memories suddenly shoot through my head.

_Anger blinds your focus._

_ Anger can only sustain you for so long._

The Keyblade twists around my hand like a crafty viper and detaches my blade from my grip. My sword is sent spiraling across the lot. My eyes widen in horror as I realize how defenseless I am. I glance back at Roxas for a moment. He wears a completely unfamiliar face, his expression empty and mechanical.

The Keyblade raises high, then drops toward me for the final blow. Fear rips my heart apart as my enemy descends upon me. I stare into the eyes of the key's prisoner, one of the people I tried so hard to protect. But it's over.

_I've failed._

I squint my eyes shut and grab Roxas' wrist in a pathetic attempt to hold back his attack. My heart's beating is as loud as thunder. I tremble and whimper like a scared child.

The striking force of his arm diminishes. The world is quiet for a moment.

"…Katie?"

I let vision back in. My head uncertainly raises itself toward the voice. Roxas looks back at me and his eyes are softer, gentler. He watches me with a worried and hurt expression, letting the Keyblade drop to the ground. It disappears.

"Roxas," I manage through fresh tears.

No other words. We embrace, a reunion after a long, lonely road. A promise kept.

The thunder recedes into the distance and the rain drizzles down lightly to wash away the dark memories that are no longer needed.


	21. Chapter 20

A/N: Hi everyone! My weekends have been busy lately and that's why I've been posting on Fridays but hopefully I'll get back to posting on Sundays soon. If not, Friday might just be the new posting day. Anyway, thanks so much to my reviewers for the support, especially on the last chapter. It really means alot. Now...on with the show!

* * *

The sky above the World That Never Was shifts between endless tones of grey. The rain drops down quietly. Roxas and I stand in the plaza below Memory's Skyscraper and Roxas' large, blue eyes watch me apologetically.

"Katie, I…I didn't even-"

"It's ok," I whisper, shaking my head. "It's not your fault."

"But I remember everything," he continues. "Waking up here, joining Organization XIII, ambushing you…but my mind was blank. I couldn't remember a single piece of who I was, not even my name. But suddenly, it all came back."

"Yeah…" I stare at the ground glumly. The rain sorrowfully drizzles against the pavement.

"You ok, Katie?" He tries to meet my gaze with concern. I look the other way.

"Katie, I'm so sorry. I wasn't trying to hurt you."

"No, it's not you," I reassure him. "Roxas, I need to just tell you this right now…" I inhale deeply and brace myself for his reaction. "That blast in Hollow Bastion nearly destroyed me and now everyone's memories have to hold me together or I'll die and no one remembers me now and I can give their memories back like I did for you but if I give away too many, then I'll fall apart and disappear!"

I squint my eyes shut to avoid seeing the hurt on his face and I wait for him to start denying it or something, but he doesn't. Instead, a soft chuckle reaches my ears and soon turns into hearty laughter that echoes through the solemn darkness of the world. I open my eyes and stare in disbelief as Roxas stands there, laughing like he just heard the funniest joke in the world.

"I-I'm sorry," he manages between guffaws. "But I'm pretty sure you're the most unlucky person I've ever met!"

I'm not sure how to react at first. I initially feel hurt that he finds it funny, but after I think about it, it is pretty funny in a way. I have to laugh along with him a little bit but it's out of relief more than anything. His light-hearted reaction to such unexpected news helps me loosen up a little. The old Roxas is definitely back.

Roxas clears his throat and forces his smile away. "In all seriousness though, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to screw everything up this badly."

"Hey, it's not your fault. You really did save everyone," I assure him. Now I'm the one who has to chuckle. "Besides, I'm the one that leapt right into the brunt of that blast like an idiot."

"At least you're still here," he grins. "So, how are the others? No one else remembers you either?"

"Riku and Kairi do," I explain. "No one else does, but I told them what happened so they know that they know me…they just don't remember any of it."

"Well, that's something," Roxas shrugs. "How did they take it?"

"It took some convincing, but I think they're fine with it now."

"That's good. So, is there a plan at this point?"

"Sorta…" I grin sheepishly. "I was actually coming here to bring Riku back…We're hoping that he draws the Organization members in so we can take them out slowly. There's no way we would survive an assault on the castle."

"Maybe I can help then," Roxas suggests. "I know the castle pretty well and I've watched most of the members train so I know their weak spots. I can help you get in there and snag Riku and then we can head back to everyone else for some training. Although, what about Sora? You know he's in there too, right?"

"I know," I admit. "Ideally, I'd like to get him out of there too, but I didn't know if I could get both of them in one run without getting caught. I didn't realize I'd have an ally. Plus, I was afraid that the whole Organization would slaughter us if I stole both of them back."

"Well, they're probably trying to do that anyway," Roxas chuckles.

"Yeah, you're right. What about you, though? The Organization still thinks you're one of them."

"Then I'm our back-up if something goes bad. Just don't take it personally if I have to knock you unconscious and lock you in the dungeon to keep my disguise."

I glare jokingly. "If I let you." I look toward the castle that looms ominously above the city. "What about afterwards? If you're coming back with us, that'll definitely be a red flag to the Nobodies that something is up."

"I don't think it matters at that point," Roxas says. "Once we get Sora and Riku back, I don't need to pretend I'm on their side anymore."

"I guess not."

"Is something else wrong?" Roxas frowns. "You seem upset about something."

"I'm not upset," I tell him. "You're just turning into Sora right now, being all carefree and shrugging everything off like it's no big deal. And it is."

"Yeah, you're right. Sorry," Roxas looks down at his shoes shamefully. "I'm just happy to see you again, that's all."

I can't help but smile. "Well, that's good."

"Are you planning on giving everyone their memories back? I mean, if you do, you'll-"

"I know. I don't know yet. I've been trying not to think about it."

"Yeah. Well, let's just save Riku and Sora and figure everything else out later, alright?"

I nod and turn to follow Roxas as he walks toward the castle. "Oh, Roxas!" I grab him by the shoulder to stop him. "One more thing…I haven't told Sora yet. About the memory thing. He has no idea who I am...And I don't know if he should know yet. I was gonna wait until this is all over to break the news to him."

Roxas nods in understanding. "My lips are sealed."

* * *

The castle is even more eerie and empty at night. Our footsteps cause hollow-sounding noises to rattle softly through the walls and ceiling of the hallway. It makes me nervous, not at the thought of getting caught, but because the sound is so unnatural. Roxas is unfazed.

He walks ahead of me, slinking near the wall and watching his surroundings alertly like a Shadow Heartless. I follow at a close distance, making sure no one is tailing us. We weave through a series of intricate corridors and rooms until we reach the sleeping quarters that I had visited on an earlier escapade. We walk past all of the rooms, including Roxas', which is marked with a XIII. We come to a blank white door with no numeral marked on the front or any other indication of who it belongs to.

"Sora," Roxas mouths to me, gesturing toward the door. Then he glances at the room across the hall and mouths, "Riku."

I nod, but hesitate to move. I'm not sure exactly how this plan is going to work. Are we literally kidnapping them or are we going to explain what's going on and convince them to come back with us? And how will they react to Roxas? They don't know that he's on our side now. I look to Roxas for help. He carefully wraps a hand around Sora's doorknob and gestures toward Riku's door for me to do the same. I walk over and grip the knob firmly, glancing back at Roxas for the next step. He holds up his free hand, counting down from three on his fingers and poising to burst through the door.

_Alright, we're going with force, _I think to myself. I wait for him to reach zero. As soon as he does, we both shove the doors open and leap through the entrances like pouncing tigers. I stop midway through the air in shock when I see that the person sitting on the bed is not Riku, but the blue-haired Nobody with the X-shaped scar on his face. He is facing the door as if expecting my arrival and he rushes toward me as soon as I enter the room, weapon drawn.

I only have a split second to draw my sword and defend myself. I cringe as the loud clang resounds in my ears and the unexpected assault nearly obliterates my guard. _WRONG DOOR, ROXAS! _I yell in my head. But it isn't Roxas' mistake, because I hear him yelp in pain and I turn to see another Organization member ambushing him from Sora's room.

I turn back around to see a large, spiked club heading for my face. I press myself against the wall of the room and the deadly weapon rips through the air inches away from my face. _They set us up! _I realize in horror. _They knew we were coming!_

Roxas takes another hit and is blasted to the ground. "Roxas!" I scream, dashing out of the room toward his body on the ground. Before I can reach him, however, the Nobody from Sora's room blocks my way. He's tall like the rest of the members, his hair is short and blonde, and he sports silver earrings that line his entire ear. In his hand, he holds five playing cards.

He tosses them towards me and they each grow to four times their size, launching forward like rockets. I watch each one and slice them in half as they reach me until the coast is clear. Then I dash forward and swing at my enemy. He steps to the side to avoid it, but I keep running to get to Roxas. The Keybearer gets to his feet.

"This is bad! We gotta get out of here, Katie!" he cries. The blue-haired Nobody dives for us. We leap to either side of him as his claymore tears the space between us into shreds. The other member shoots more cards, one set aimed at me and the other at Roxas. I cartwheel and roll to the side to avoid them and they spear the wall behind me.

"Let's get out of here!" Roxas screams worriedly at me, summoning a Corridor of Darkness. I run towards him. The blonde member whips around and sends a kick toward my gut as I pass him. I jump and tumble over it, spinning around as I land. I sink my blade right into his chest. His eyes widen and his mouth drops open noiselessly as he fades away. The other Nobody roars in anger as he charges me, rage in his eyes. I retreat backwards but he catches up to me within seconds. I feel Roxas' hand grab my hood and yank me backwards into the Corridor as the Nobody's weapon skims the zipper of my cloak. The Corridor envelops us in the nick of time and I watch the man's bloodthirsty eyes disappear behind a veil of darkness.


	22. Chapter 21

A/N: I apologize that this wasn't up earlier today. I've been pretty busy and this chapter needed a little editing. Anyway, hope you enjoy! (Also, I uploaded a cover for this fic! You can't see it very well in the tiny little box but I did post it on my deviantARt account if you wanna stalk it there! I spent hours on it X))

* * *

"How did they know?" Roxas pants, steadying himself from the commotion. "How did they know we were coming?"

I drop to a sitting position, rubbing my forehead uneasily. The grass beneath me is cool and gentle. I try to calm my nerves down. "I have no idea." We are behind the Twilight Town mansion again, somewhere deep in the Woods.

_"The Well of Foresight," _Co's voice sounds. Roxas jolts upward and looks around frantically.

"Did you hear that?" he asks me, wide-eyed.

"Did _you_ hear that?" I respond incredulously.

_"The Superior sees all in the Well. He has been watching XIII for some time now. He saw your entire battle and your trek to the castle."_

"So he knows Roxas got his memories back then," I conclude.

_"Yes."_

Roxas' horrified look heightens and he stares at me. "You know this person?! Where _are _they?"

"Yeah I do, but I have no idea how you're hearing this," I admit. Then I call, "Co! Show yourself!"

_"I cannot, Master," _Co responds.

"Why?" I cry angrily.

Roxas' confusion grows even more. "Master?!"

_"I no longer belong only to you," _Co explains. _"I am XIII's memories as well. Now that he has regained them, my power is too drawn-out for me to manifest myself."_

"Great," I mumble. "Well, I guess that explains why Roxas can hear you now too."

"Katie, what the heck is happening?" Roxas asks. "How much did I miss while I was gone?"

I sigh. "Basically, Co is your memories of me. After you forgot me, all your memories of me left you and became a part of my heart. They became their own sort of being, which is Co. That's why it called me Master. It was a part of my heart and memories. That's also why it can talk into my head like that. Since it's a part of me or my heart or whatever, it can communicate with me…I don't know. I've learned not to question. All I can gather is that it's like a link between us. Although it may be a little creepy if we're both hearing the same voice all the time…"

Roxas seems to be thinking about something for a minute. "You can communicate back with it, right? Like it can hear you talking and stuff?"

"Yeah."

"Then it could be more useful than we think. We could use it to communicate back and forth with each other if we get separated on a mission or something, right? I tell it what to say, it says it and you hear it, then you can reply back."

"That's true," I state. "Nice thinking. That'll be helpful when we go back for Sora and Riku."

"But if the Superior can see us with that well thing, how can we get in without being spotted?" Roxas wonders.

"I don't know…" I admit.

_"You won't have to," _Co says before his voice fades off into the distance. There's a rustling sound behind us and we both turn toward the source of the noise, ready to attack. A cloaked Organization member steps out from behind a tree. Roxas and I immediately draw our weapons and pounce. The member frantically pulls his hood down and dodges the attacks.

"It's me!" he cries. We pause and stare confusedly at Riku. He matches our gazes with an equally perplexed look. "…Roxas is back?"

"Hey, Riku," Roxas greets with a genuine smile.

"What do you want?" I ask as calmly as possible, but I still come off as harsh. He winces at my tone.

"I came to warn you," he explains.

"About what?" wonders Roxas, slightly deterred by my cold greeting.

Riku speaks softer than usual, as if vulnerable and helpless. "The Superior's plan is almost complete. Organization XIII is going to launch a huge assault to take as many more prisoners as possible, and after that, it will only be a matter of days before they harness Kingdom Hearts' power."

"And get their hearts back?" Roxas confirms. Riku nods.

"Is that all they want?" I question angrily. "They're taking hundreds of lives just to become human again?"

"Yes." Riku's voice breaks down even farther. I start to get worked up.

"Well, that's not okay" I state firmly. "Nor is it ok for them to force Sora to do their dirty work. We've gotta stop them."

Riku nods in agreement. "Make sure the others know," he adds. I place my hands on my hips sternly and stare him down.

"You can tell them yourself. You aren't honestly planning to run back to the Superior's side, are you?"

"Katie, they'll kill all of you if I don't."

"Well, bring 'em on!" I roar. "They're out to get us anyway! And I wouldn't mind roughing them up a little!"

"Maybe they won't hurt you. What if they hurt Sora instead?"

"They can't. They need him," I point out. "Now come on. We're going to the mansion."

I turn and walk fiercely in the direction that I hope the mansion is in. I hear Roxas start to follow. Riku hesitates. He calls out my name. "Katie, wait."

I halt and face my friend with a challenging expression. "Whose side are you taking? Ours or theirs?"

He looks straight into my eyes as he talks. "I want to help you guys. I really do." The eye contact breaks and he looks uncertainly toward the lush grass below. "But…how do I face everyone?"

The tone in his voice is so pleading that I can't help but lighten up on him. I'm not sure what to say at first but I can tell he's hurting because I've never seen Riku act so helpless or emotional. I slowly walk over to him and place a hand on his shoulder to encourage him to look at me. He finally does and I give a gentle, encouraging smile.

"We're right here by your side, ok?"

His eyes fill with gratitude and understanding and he glances toward Roxas. Roxas chuckles. "Join the club! I was helping them too, y'know."

Then together, we all head toward the mansion once again, united as friends and as allies, ready to face the war ahead.

* * *

The days get longer and longer here. The stormy clouds across the sky never leave and the world is monotonous beyond belief. Even the castle itself makes me feel numb. I want to fight back, but there's nothing I can do. The Nobodies are all rounded up and about to leave for another kidnapping excursion. This one is bigger than ever before. To top it off, Roxas is gone. The Superior said he ran. But he got his memory back. If he can find Cid and the others, he'll be ok.

I hope they stop Organization XIII soon. I can't take this anymore. I can't kill.

I hope everyone is ok. If they don't know what's coming, they'll be in huge trouble. And I can't take that either. I can't handle losing any more of my friends.

* * *

Night is falling. The group sits around a table on the patio of a little café in the Second District of Twilight Town. The lights and outdoor signs of the shops all around us light up the streets with a cheery glow that penetrates the darkness' gloom. We eat a hearty meal and laugh and talk until the sun is completely set beyond the horizon. Riku was welcomed back into the group without question, especially by Kairi. Roxas was also immediately greeted by everyone, though they were a little surprised to see him.

It isn't long before businesses start to close down for the night. The café approaches closing hour and we prepare to head back to the mansion. We leave our munny on the table and walk as a group toward the Woods. The dim lights of the Second District soon fall behind us and we walk through darkness that is illuminated only by the pale moon. As we pass the main entrance to the Sandlot, a chill crawls up my spine and I hear faint rustling nearby.

I freeze in place and listen, the hairs on my neck standing on end. Riku and Roxas stop walking when they notice me falling behind.

"What's wrong?" Roxas wonders.

"Shhh," I order, concentrating. The others stop and turn toward me. I try to pick up any other suspicious sounds but I can't tell if I'm hearing anything noteworthy. That's when another rustling reaches my ears and my head snaps in the direction of the Sandlot. I remember Riku's warning about the Organization preparing for an ambush.

_Dammit! _I grit my teeth and look toward Roxas. He locks gazes with me and nods in understanding.

_"They're here," _Co says. We both rush toward the Sandlot with the others following closely behind, wondering what they are getting into. I wonder the same thing.


	23. Chapter 22

A/N: Almost forgot it was Sunday! Anyway, prepare for big action chapter. I hope you like battle scenes...Also, this chapter could probably use a LOT of editing, but honestly, I just don't have time. So I apologize for that. But I hope you enjoy it anyway and thanks for the support, as always!

P.S. Anyone else doing NaNoWriMo this year?! :D

* * *

When we reach the Sandlot, we find a horde of lesser Nobodies infesting the area. Since Roxas and I are the first to arrive, we are the first to leap into action, but it isn't long before everyone else joins in. The enemies are destroyed in a matter of minutes and we all regroup.

"What's going on?" Tifa wonders. "Why are so many Nobodies here all of a sudden?"

"The Organization has launched the last part of their plan," Riku explains. "This is their last big attack to gather up more hearts. After that, they're going to use Kingdom Hearts and all the power gathered from the hearts they stole to become human again. If we don't stop them tonight, who knows how many lives they'll take?"

"That doesn't sound good," quips Cid. "Are we talking 'last big attack' as in the whole Organization is here?"

"I don't know," admits Riku. "But most of them probably are."

"Then let's go!" Yuffie commands. "We gotta split up to catch 'em all! Tifa and Cid, you come with me. Hayner, you, Rai, and Roxas can cover the Second District. Katie, you take Riku, and Kairi to defend the back alleys."

"Gotcha," I nod, gripping my sword tightly. "And if something goes wrong, we can call on the watches, right? They're still working fine?"

"You betcha," Cid grins.

"Sweet," I smirk.

"C'mon!" Riku calls, already at the base of the stairs leading toward the alleyways. Kairi and I dash after him as everyone goes their separate ways. We ascend the flight of steps together and urgently careen down the narrow corridor of buildings. As we round a corner, a silhouette of black barely visible in the darkness scampers up the alleyway in the distance.

"Did you see that?" I whisper to my comrades. They nod silently and we creep toward the cloaked Nobody. It tiptoes around a corner. We keep a safe distance and slide along the wall, nearing the edge of the corner. Taking a deep breath, I grip my sword and slip around the side of the building, ready to strike. I'm greeted by emptiness.

Riku and Kairi appear behind me a moment later and become just as confused as I am. I walk forward, looking for any other paths that the member could have taken. They do the same but we don't see any alternate routes. I grumble in my head, assuming we lost the Nobody's trail.

Suddenly, the shadows in front of me shift and the member leaps out of the darkness, completely camouflaged when motionless. I curse under my breath and brace myself as hands ringed with yellow daggers hack at my flesh. Riku immediately leaps to my aid, striking back against the foe. His efforts protect me for a moment but the Nobody doesn't slow down. In fact, the foe moves so quickly that its hood flips down to reveal its face. It bears the face of a blonde woman who smirks smugly at our struggling.

She strikes relentlessly, forcing both Riku and I to fall into completely defensive mode lest we both be ripped to shreds. Kairi uses magic from the sidelines to support us, Reflecting moves that break through our guard and healing hits that we were too late to avoid. We start to run out of steam, but Kairi blasts the Nobody backwards with a powerful Aerora spell. This gives us a brief opening and we take it.

Riku darts in from the side for a quick, assassin-style slash. I leap in for an aerial strike, but my timing is off. Riku reaches her first and the sneaky member slides around his blade, readying herself in time for my attack. I see a blur as the blonde Nobody jumps under me, latches onto my wrists to leave my arms immobile, and uses both feet to catapult me toward a building. The low thud of my body hitting brick rattles through my bones. My vision fails me and I fall to the ground, toppling over from dizziness.

I see the green glow of a Cure spell and I'm able to wobble to my feet again. Blurs of black and blue rip through the air in front of me as the two warriors in cloaks fight before my eyes. I steady myself again and run forward to help, my vision still focusing back in on my surroundings. Kairi casts Blizzara from the side, landing a hit on the Nobody. Riku takes the opportunity to land his own attack, cutting a gash in the Organization member's shoulder. The woman growls in frustration and leaps above us as I reach the battle again.

With a speedy flick of her hands, the Nobody summons up a storm of Thundagas that fire down into the ground. We all take a hard hit but she doesn't give us a break. She targets Kairi next, zipping down from the air and slashing at the young mage with her lethal knives. Kairi's eyes bug out in frantic surprise and she weaves backwards away from the attacks, attempting to ward the enemy off with more spells.

I hurl my sword at the Nobody's back. It jabs into her spine and she tenses in place, mouth and eyes wide open. Riku sprints over, sword drawn, and slices through the Nobody's neck. She immediately fades into waves of nothingness that merge with the sky.

One down.

Riku and Kairi regroup, checking that neither of them are injured. I catch my breath as I hear Co's voice ringing through my head. _"XIII requires assistance in the Second District."_

"Thanks," I reply quietly. "Tell him I'm on my way." I raise my voice slightly to address Kairi and Riku. "Roxas needs our help. We gotta get over to the Second District."

"Alright, let's go," Riku immediately answers.

"OK, but how did you know that?" Kairi wonders. "I didn't even see you get your watch out."

"Long story," I answer, dashing down the alley. Once I'm running quickly enough, I glance toward the buildings surrounding me and calculate my motion and the distance between the structures. With a forceful jump, I leap to the side and push off of the wall next to me, springing to the other side of the alley. After a few more hops between the buildings, I reach the roofs and dash along them, stopping where the row ends. I overlook the Second District, trying to spot my comrades. I see Roxas and company down by the candy shop, fighting two Organization members at once. I drop down from my perch, watching the ground rise toward my face and feeling the wind wrap around my body. I catch myself in the stance that Leon taught me, avoiding shock from the impact. Looking toward the nearby battle, I prepare myself to fight.

Riku and Kairi exit the alleyway farther down the District, catching sight of me after a few moments and coming over to assist us. As I approach the fray, I recognize one of the members. He fought us in the castle before Sora and I were captured. He wields a strange blue shield on his arm and constantly wears a psychotic grin, even in the gravest of situations. His ally, a Nobody holding two frightening guns in hand, warps around the group, loosing glowing red bullets upon them. I roll under a few bullets overhead and pop up beside Hayner in time to block an attack from the blonde creep.

"Hey, just in time!" Roxas notes, swinging at the blonde Nobody. The man ducks under it and lunges back. Roxas flips away from the attack. "I guess Co gave you my message then?"

"You bet!" I call, pivoting and parrying four bullets that come our way. Hayner yells and jumps at the floating Nobody. The man, who wears a smug grin and an eye patch, teleports out of sight. The member with the shield darts behind us.

"Look out, y'know!" Rai calls, jumping at his face and swinging an iron fist. The Nobody simply smirks and brings his shield up, which lets out a loud crash when Rai's fist connects. Hayner readies a fierce combo to take the member out but huge ice crystals spurt from the ground between him and his target. Roxas aims for the Nobody's back before more bullets barrage him from the side, temporarily distracting him.

"Dang, we can't do anything with those blasted guns!" Roxas screams. "We have to take out the other guy first!"

"Got it!" I call, turning my attention to the show-off on my right. "Cover me!" I order Hayner. He nods and places himself between me and the ice-casting Nobody. I initiate an uppercut to rip through the gunslinger but he warps away from the attack again, shooting at my back. I turn in time to see it coming and dodge, but I growl in frustration. He's too fast.

Riku arrives from behind and shoots orbs of Dark Fire at the Nobody's back. Not expecting this, the man takes the damage and whips around to face his new opponents. Kairi launches multiple Watera spells, which are avoided with a few teleportations. The Nobody then fires more bullets. Riku steps in front of Kairi and parries them all while Roxas and I jump from behind, coming down in an X formation. The Organization member whips around and randomly fires off a salvo of razor-sharp bullets in a frantic attempt to save himself. At the same time, a massive iceberg sprouts up between us and our enemy. A bullet grazes my arm as I crash into the icy wall and tumble to the ground. Roxas trips over the obstacle but still manages to follow through with his attack, leaving a faint slash in the Nobody's side. He lands and winces as he pulls a glowing projectile from his arm. Kairi chugs an Ether and conjures up a Cure while Hayner and Rai duke it out with the blonde member.

The man with the eye patch doesn't give us a moment's rest. We're soon being assaulted with gunfire again and Riku and I leap to the defensive while Roxas whips out a sneak attack. With a quick slide and hop into the air, he places himself behind the enemy and jabs the Keyblade toward the member's back. He hits air as the Nobody warps and soon Roxas is the one being attacked from behind.

"Look out!" Kairi screams, instinctually jumping into the air. She grabs Roxas by the wrist and whips him out of the way as a flurry of bullets unleashes itself. With the grace and expertise of a true warrior, she flips backward and twists through the air. The bullets all fire past her and leave her unscathed as she lands on the ground and summons a Firaga that surrounds her enemy in a twister of fire. While the Nobody is engulfed in flame, Riku arcs through the air and slices through the foe. The man explodes into tendrils of white and black and nothing is left behind. Riku and Kairi grin, silently congratulating each other on their teamwork.

I glance toward Hayner and Rai who are slowly weakening their opponent. Rai begins a ruthless beatdown which is mostly blocked by the Nobody's shield, but a few buffets manage to hit. The man's unnatural smile beings to fade as his chances of survival grow slim.

Hayner slides behind the foe and swings upward with his club. He hits the Nobody upside the head and nearly knocks him over. Rai strikes from the front again, pounding the member in the chin. Roxas springs into the air and raises the Keyblade high. The light from the streetlamps catches its edge. The blade glimmers like a golden sun. Hayner whips out a somersault kick, which the Nobody blocks, but the force pushes him to the ground. Roxas falls from directly above him and the Keyblade pierces through the hollow cavity in the man's chest that once contained a heart. Another body becomes nothing but emptiness and rises to the heavens.

We all let out a deep breath that we had been holding in the entire battle. Roxas and Hayner high five and Rai joins the quiet celebration. I smile at Riku and Kairi, thankful that no one was seriously hurt. I begin to wonder how Yuffie and the others are doing. "Who has a watch on them?" I throw out for anyone to answer.

"I got mine." Rai raises his arm for emphasis. He plods over. "What do you need?"

"You wanna call the others? We should see how they're doing," I respond, fidgeting anxiously.

"Hey, look out!" Hayner yells, jumping over me and destroying a Dusk that snuck up on us. A few more lesser Nobodies approach us from across the plaza.

"They just never give up, do they?" growls Riku.

Rai begins talking to someone through the watch while the rest of us step out to challenge the new enemies. The battle is significantly easier than the last, as the Nobodies we now face are much weaker and less clever than their human-like leaders. I glance back between strikes to check on Rai. He finally flicks his watch off and I rip through another foe before jogging over to him.

"What's the deal?" I wonder.

"Yuffie said they were over at Sunset Terrace now. They've taken out one member so far but they can't find anyone else, yknow?"

"Hmm, smart thinking heading over there. So they don't need help?"

"Doesn't sound like it."

"Ok. Where haven't we searched yet? We're bound to be missing some of them."

As an answer to my question, a scream rings through the darkness. Our heads snap in the direction of the cry and we take off running towards the hill to the train station. After reaching the residential area where the shriek most likely came from, we split up and wander in separate directions, looking for the person in trouble. I turn around a corner in time to see a cloaked Organization member dragging its victim down a Corridor of Darkness. I'm too late to do anything and the Corridor disappears before my eyes. I curse under my breath, but within seconds, another portal pops up behind me and the member is back for an ambush from behind. An indescribable force crushes me from behind and a sickening _snap! _rings through my ears. I'm thrown to the ground, pain shooting up every nerve in my body. I scream bloody murder.

Sound blurs in my head and I can't make out any distinct images. The buildings and ground around me blend into one mass and I can only detect movement, not clear shapes or outlines. I squint my eyes shut to stop the pulsing headache that's beating through my mind but it doesn't go away. Random memories flood into my conscious as I feel my spine start to knit itself back together. I sense someone working on healing me but I can't think straight.

After torturous hours that, in reality, were probably a total of thirty seconds, the steady thumping in my head grows quieter and I'm able to open my eyes again. My body aches, particularly in my lower back where the hit connected. I let myself lay still for a few more seconds as my vision begins to return to normal. I gain my eyesight back in time to see the bulky red-headed member with the gargantuan club fade away. I force myself to my feet, but I wince as a sharp pain runs up my back. I start to collapse to the ground.

"Take it easy!" Kairi exclaims, quickly supporting me under the arm. Riku dashes over and helps me from the other side. Roxas and Rai watch worriedly and uneasily, not sure what to do.

"Geez, are you ok, Katie?" Roxas swallows hard.

"That was low, yknow?" Rai mutters under his breath.

"I-I'm fine," I manage through clenched teeth. "Let's just keep going. There are probably other members around here too."

"Keep going? Certainly not!" Kairi reprimands me. "You're going back to the mansion to rest!"

"No I'm not!" I protest. "I'm fine!"

"Katie, you just had your spine snapped in half! You're in no condition to fight!" Kairi cries sternly.

"Sure I am. See?" I snake out of their grips and hold my arms out in a "Ta-dah!" fashion. Not a second later, I falter and trip over myself. A sharp sting pierces my back again. They rush forward to catch me and I manage to somewhat balance myself out. Kairi scowls at me like an overprotective mother but I'm a stubborn kid.

"I'm not going back to the mansion and that's final," I state. "Now come on, let's head toward the others to regroup."

"Umm, normally I would just give in to your unchangeable mind, Katie," Roxas says sheepishly. "But maybe you oughta take it easy for awhile."

I glare at him but Riku joins. "They're right. Besides, you'll want your strength for the final battle."

"I have my strength," I grumble. "I'm made of freaking memories, remember? My bones are back to normal."

"Still…" Roxas scratches his head uneasily. At that moment, footsteps rapidly trod down the road. Yuffie and Tifa run over to us while Cid jogs behind, wheezing and trying to keep up. When he finally makes it to the group, he keels over. "Man, I'm out of shape," he notes.

"We took out one more member, but the others got away," Yuffie explains. "They got a lot of people too. There were just too many to stop them."

"Then let's go, before it's too late," I state firmly.

"Go?" Tifa repeats, acting confused, though I can tell she knows exactly what I mean.

"The people they just kidnapped aren't dead yet, right?" I begin. "If we act now, we can save them and thwart Organization XIII before they can follow through with their plan. If we wait any longer, they'll have time to prepare for us coming. Now's our chance."

"But we haven't had time to prepare either," Roxas points out.

"We'll have to make it up as we go," I continue. "But we need them at the greatest disadvantage possible. We all know that. We're lucky tonight went as well as it did."

"As long as we know what we're getting ourselves into," Riku solemnly adds. "A showdown with the Superior won't be easy."

"No, it won't," I admit. "But we'll also have Sora on our side. He's waiting for us. We can't leave him there any longer."

Riku glances down guiltily. "You're right."

"So this is it then?" Cid asks, wide-eyed. "We're going for it?"

"Are you sure we shouldn't rest first? Just really quickly?" Tifa wonders.

"Especially in your condition," Kairi adds dryly, sending me a completely unamused expression.

Yuffie quirks her eyebrow and looks to Kairi for clarification. "What condition?"

"Nothing, it's all good," I grin, calling up a Corridor. "We'll be fine. We always pull through."

Cid turns to Riku. "Did we always follow this bimbo into mortal danger? No wonder we all nearly died."

Riku sighs. "You learn to live with it."

I ignore them. "I'm going to go save the day again! Whoever wants to join me is welcome!" I call in a sing-song voice, trotting through the Corridor that leads to the World that Never Was.

"Condition? Did she actually get hurt?" Yuffie asks Kairi as they walk toward the portal. "She seems fine…"

"She broke her spine, Yuffie!" Kairi hisses at her friend.

Yuffie's eyes widen. "And she can still waltz around and _want _to head into battle again?! I hope the _Superior_ knows what he's getting into…"

Kairi looks desperately toward the sky of Twilight Town one last time. "Let's hope so."


	24. Chapter 23

The Organization sent all of its members to Twilight Town for one last kidnapping. Riku was with them but he hasn't come back. Roxas never came back either. He just disappeared. I hope something didn't happen to them.

The Superior is sending me down to the dungeon. This will be the last round of killing before Kingdom Hearts is complete. I hope I can hold myself together. I want to fight back but I don't want the others to get hurt because of me. Riku, Roxas, Kairi, and all my other friends out there…

Give me strength.

* * *

We arrive at the World that Never Was and are greeted by the soft clap of thunder in the clouds. Rain falls down on my face as I look skyward toward Kingdom Hearts. The massive heart in the sky stares back at me with melancholy.

The others take in the environment incredulously. "They really have all this space to themselves?" questions Yuffie. I mentally plot out the best course of action while Riku, Kairi, and Roxas wait for me to tell them what to do. I turn to my comrades.

"Here's the plan. We all infiltrate the castle and head for the Superior. If we run into trouble along the way, Yuffie, Rai, Hayner, Cid, and Tifa are our back-up squad. They'll handle the battles while the rest of us push forward. I want the people with cloaks to be the team that hunts down the Superior because we'll be harder to detect."

"But what about me?" wonders Kairi.

"I want you with us in case we get into a tight situation and need magic. But if the others are struggling, then you'll join their group."

"Sounds good," she nods.

"I'm hoping we can grab Sora and stop the Organization from killing the rest of the prisoners before it's too late. Once we have Sora back, then we find the Superior and take him down. Any questions?"

Everyone exchanges glances but they all look set on ending the fight. No one says anything. "Alright, then let's go," I declare. We begin to walk toward the Organization's stronghold with Kingdom Hearts contemplating our every move.

_I'm actually surprised you didn't protest against any of this, _I say in my head, addressing Co.

_"Why would I protest, Master?" _Co asks.

_I don't know. I expected some comment about hasty and irrational decisions or something along those lines._

There's a pause before Co answers. _"You have come far, Master, and taught me that perhaps I was wrong. Some of your decisions have been naïve or ill-judged, but they have been grounded in emotion. And that has given you power rather than blindness, as I previously believed."_

_ So you think I made the right decision by coming here?_

_ "That, I cannot say. All I can say is that you came here for the bond you share with someone special to you, and for a passion to fight that runs deeper than that of most warriors. No matter how this battle ends, your heart will know whether it has chosen the right path. You will feel it."_

_ Wow, you're turning a little emotional yourself, Co, _I smirk to myself.

_"I cannot feel emotion, Master. I am simply speaking the truth."_

I smile and let Co's words echo through my mind into the distance. It said I would know if I had made the right decision. Right now, all I feel is doubt. I have no idea if this was a good idea or not. I was just following my instinct. And my instinct told me to end the fight. I hope I can trust myself this time.

Roxas, who could hear Co's voice the whole time, glances over at me. I make brief eye contact, wondering how much of the conversation he picked up. I can tell he knows exactly what I'm thinking about and can sense my doubt. I ignore this and keep walking, listening to the patter of rain under our feet. It's too late to turn back now.

We reach the front of the castle where a long, icy bridge extends from the edge of the city to the white, ominous fortress before us. We prepare to cross over the gaping abyss when a voice from behind stops us short.

"Going somewhere?"

A tall, pink-haired man bearing the black Organization coat and a playful smile appears behind us.

"I didn't expect them to try and stop us this early on," I grumble to myself. The Nobody keeps the same malicious smile plastered on his face.

"Well, of course. Have to have some fun, you know. It can be dreadfully boring sitting in that castle all day." A soft breeze blows from nowhere and a single rose petal rides the gust, sweeping in front of the man's face. As it flutters by, he snatches it with lightning-quick reflexes and a huge, swooped scythe appears in his hand, shimmering in Kingdom Hearts' glow.

We all tense and fall into defensive position. Rai and Tifa step out in front of the group, fists bared. "Your weapon doesn't scare us, y'know!" Rai calls fiercely, readying for battle. Tifa stands beside him in her fighting stance.

"You guys go," Tifa tells us over her shoulder. "We'll handle this. You get to the Superior."

"Right," I nod and we rush off to the castle. I force myself not to look back as lightning flashes through the sky and the sound of war rips through the air behind me.

* * *

Once we're inside the castle, I ask Riku how to get to the dungeon. He leads the way and we all solemnly dash behind him, simultaneously hoping that the Organization hasn't killed their victims yet. My heart pounds as it listens for the sound of human screams to be unleashed at any moment. Fortunately, it never hears them.

We reach the staircase winding down to the dungeon and begin to descend into the darkness. Riku goes first, moving with a silent urgency. We quickly follow, the tension in the air driving us forward with each step. When we arrive at the bottom of the stairs, we stop short in a tiny huddle. Two figures stand before us: Sora and the blue-haired member that I encountered on numerous other excursions to the castle. When our eyes meet, he grins coldly and I glare at him with a burning hatred.

Sora's eyes display disbelief. "What are you guys doing here?"

"You shouldn't have come," the Nobody smirks. "Nothing but death and ruin awaits."

"For _you!_" I cry, drawing my sword. The commotion and gasping from the cells down the hall cause me to sigh in relief. The prisoners are still alive.

"Katie, stick to your own plan." Yuffie growls angrily at me. "Cid, Hayner, and I will fight this guy. You take Sora and find the Superior."

"Oh, but I believe she _wants _to fight," the man grins with ill-will and bloodlust. "After all, we have a score to settle." He snaps and a high-pitched whir sounds behind us. Hayner turns and pounds on an invisible wall that has appeared in front of the exit.

"We're trapped!" he cries.

The blue-haired Nobody calls his weapon. A spiked claymore appears in his hand. "No!" Sora yells, whipping out the key and striking. The member quickly turns and blocks the attack, forcing Sora down the dark, torch-lined hall. I let out a war cry and leap over my allies, blade raised over my head. My enemy sidesteps as I land, then brings his claymore down immediately toward my body. I leap forward, somersaulting across the ground to avoid the fatal hit.

Riku runs down the hall, blade at his side, ready to strike. As he closes in on his target, he swings his weapon up in a diagonal arc. The Nobody twirls out of the way but it nicks his arm, causing a shallow wound to open. He growls in frustration and takes a sideswipe at Riku's head. The teen ducks under it. Sora comes back for another hit, jabbing forward to run the member through. The Nobody can do nothing but warp down the hall to avoid the hit.

By now, Hayner, Cid, and Yuffie have joined the fight too, careening down the hall with loud battle cries. Kairi sends an orb of icy Blizzard magic between all of us. It weaves right for the member's face but his claymore deflects it. I throw my sword, also aiming for the man's face. The light radiating from it skims the walls and illuminates their rocky surface for a brief moment before letting the darkness sink back in. The member parries again with his claymore, knocking the sword to the side like a bothersome pest. Yuffie, Cid, and Hayner reach him and attack in unison. The Nobody hooks his weapon around Cid's lance and swings the man around to attack his own allies, sending Hayner and Yuffie spiraling to the floor. Cid is hurled to the ground after them.

Roxas and Sora come from opposite directions, flanking the Nobody from front and behind. They leap to the side and push off the walls, flying through the air like bullets aimed at their enemy. The Organization member whips around in a circle, his spined weapon dancing around him, aimed outward as a defense. Sora flips forward and lands on the claymore like a ledge while Roxas soars through an opening in the member's guard and kicks him in the chest. As he topples to the ground, Sora jumps off of the weapon and smashes the Keyblade into the Nobody's face.

We all watch the blue-haired man rise slowly to his feet, wondering if he is still going to fight back. A new scar is cut across his left cheek. He glares at us with an inhuman look before beginning to chuckle. Before any of us can figure out what's funny about the situation other than the huge mark on the man's face, he begins laughing even louder. He sounds maniacal and the bone-chilling snicker escaping his lips rattles through the iron bars around us. I shiver and grip my sword tighter.

"You have no idea what you've just done," he begins, breathing heavily. His eyes begin to look less and less human and his smile becomes unnatural. "I WILL TEAR YOU TO PIECES!"

He launches forward at impossible speeds, seeming to float rather than run along the ground. The claymore whizzes through the air. We all leap away from the attack and I see the pointed edge of the weapon narrowly miss my face as I step back. The Nobody then launches into a frenzy, leaping up and down the hall, wielding his claymore like a madman. Walls crack and metal clangs as we dodge and try to keep ourselves alive amidst the chaos.

The Organization member stabs at Yuffie. The ninja flips over the weapon, three shuriken ready in hand to cut the Nobody's throat. However, the man is too fast and his free hand shoots out and latches around Yuffie's neck. He pounds her against the rock wall behind him and crushes her neck, blocking any oxygen from entering. Cid yells and thrusts his lance forward, sinking it into the member's upper arm. "Leave her alone, you bastard!" he screams.

The Nobody cringes in pain and drops his victim. Yuffie falls to the ground sputtering and rubbing her throat. The blue-haired member turns, lips curled back over his gritted teeth. "No, Cid, look out!" Yuffie cries hoarsely. The Nobody howls with rage and charges Cid, who despairingly braces himself with his lance.

I run and dive toward the two of them, flipping in front of Cid. I guard with my sword. A resounding clang echoes through the dungeon and my bones shake from the impact. He continues beating against my blade, each blow weakening me more and more. The others immediately come to my aid. Sora runs along the wall and hops between us, blocking a hit for me and propelling the Nobody backwards. Kairi casts a few Thundara spells as Riku and Roxas use their own weapons to beat back the enemy. The Nobody swings his claymore out, pushing Riku and Roxas away from him. He proceeds to run at us head-on again. He screams with fury and the momentum behind his attack will definitely be enough to kill us if the hit lands. I see my opening and take it.

I dash straight at him. Someone screams my name and tells me to stop, but I shut all sound out of my head. My eyes lock with the Nobody's as we speed towards each other. Time seems to move in slow motion. The distance between us slowly diminishes. I watch the arc of his claymore, the movement of the air around each spike as the fatal weapon curls up toward me. My feet leave the ground, tucking in close to my body. I can feel the sharp edge of the weapon slice the space beneath my feet. I tip forward, looking for a place to rest my sword. I jab it forward and roll through the air, landing on my feet in a curled position.

Time resumes its usual pace. I breathe heavily, eyes fixed ahead, waiting. I hear a thud behind me as the member falls to his hands and knees, sword protruding from his back. I turn around and mercifully send my weapon away. The man pants heavily, holding onto his life as tendrils of grey and white slither out of his body.

"Anger blinds your focus," I tell him grimly.

He lets out a small chuckle again. "Foolish child. Nobodies cannot feel anger. Only numbness and apathy."

"Then how did you fight with so much rage and hate?"

"To fight or to surrender, it doesn't matter. It's all the same. Yet we have to choose one or the other."

I frown in annoyance. "Fighting us and letting us kill you would have been the same? Is that what you're saying?"

"Either way, I lay defeated and you continue on, correct?" the member questions gruffly. "But either way, it doesn't matter. Whether you fight or surrender, the result is the same. The Superior needs the Keyblade for his plan. If you confront him, you hand it over to him. But if you surrender and leave now, he will continue killing again. It doesn't matter what you do. In the end, nothing will matter."

"You're wrong!" I declare. "If we just give up, greed will win and countless more lives will be lost. But if we stop the Superior, then everyone is safe again. Tell me how those two are the same!"

The Nobody begins to become transparent and his voice is barely audible. "It's too late to stop him. To fight or to surrender. It's all the same…" His voice echoes emptily through the dark corridor as he disappears from sight. We all stare in silence at the place where the man knelt only moments ago. His parting words dance through my head and haunt me but I push them away.

"Everyone ready to continue?" I ask, my voice barely above a whisper. No one says anything but I receive a few solemn nods. After a moment, Kairi and Yuffie smile happily and hug Sora as the others greet him and welcome him back into the group. I suddenly realize how excited I am to see him again. I dash over and give him a huge hug too. He takes surprise to it at first and I realize that he still doesn't know that we know each other.

I awkwardly let go and manage a, "Glad you're ok."

He chuckles. "You too. And glad you're so excited to me!"

I look away to hide my embarrassment and gesture toward the iron cells. "Someone wanna let them go?" Roxas shoots me a sad but understanding smile and walks over to the cells. He opens the doors with the Keyblade. Large groups of people emerge from their prisons, scared and confused. I open a Corridor leading back to Twilight Town.

"Everyone through," I order. "This'll take you back to Twilight Town, ok? You're safe now."

They hesitate at first, but then they begin flooding through the Corridor, returning to their homes. We can't do the same yet.

"Are we heading for the Superior again?" Hayner asks.

"Yeah," I nod. "We're not quitting now. We're going to fight." As the Corridor closes behind us, sealing the people of Twilight Town safely behind it, my friends and I ascend the stairs to the light of the castle, once again heading toward the battle of our lives.

* * *

A/N: Getting very close to the climax now! Hope you're all still enjoying the story. Please let me know what you thought! Like it, hate it, don't understand it? Wanna smite it, break it, or vengefully rubber band it? (That doesn't have to make sense. It's just a rhyme.) For those who already review, thank you and I hope you continue to read. For those who read but don't review, I'd love to see your comments! Adios until next week!


	25. Chapter 24

We tread warily through the white halls of the Castle that Never Was. I walk slightly ahead of everyone else and Roxas walks beside me. The absolute silence around us makes every footstep sound like a clap of thunder. I suspect that any nearby members can easily hear us, but no one appears to stop us. We continue walking until we approach a spacious but empty room at the end of the hall.

I expect Roxas to send a message over via Co, maybe a question about the fight or some words of encouragement. But all is quiet. No strange voices in my head. Even Co itself remains silent of its own will. Maybe there's nothing left to say.

Yuffie begins to worry about Tifa and Rai. "You think they're ok?" she asks anxiously.

"I'm sure they can handle that punk," Cid answers smugly. "Besides, they'll take care of each other."

The young ninja doesn't seem convinced, but she says nothing else. Sora speaks next. Of everyone here, he has the most catching-up to do.

"So, how did you escape from the castle, Katie? They didn't force you to work for them too?"

"No. I made a mad dash for it. Nearly got killed, but I got out safely. I…tried to save you, but it didn't exactly work out…Sorry."

"It's ok. I understand," he smiles gently. "I would've been too scared to even attempt a rescue!" He adds, laughing genuinely. "And Kairi, I guess you got your memory back somehow."

The girl nods. "Yeah, the Organization had it the whole time. But we managed to get it back," she smiles.

"Oh, and what about you, Roxas? You got your memory back too."

"Yeah," Roxas glances nervously at me. "It's…kinda a long story…"

"OK, you're right. We can talk about this later," the brunette decides. "Right now, we should just focus on the Superior."

I sigh to myself. It would be so much easier to tell him everything right now, but all his attention needs to be on staying alive. If I try to explain to him now that we've known each other our whole lives and are lovers to top it off, that might be a little distracting during the final showdown. And I don't want him doing anything reckless, like sacrificing himself for me. I know Sora. He wouldn't have to remember me to protect me. As soon as I explain what's going on, he'll act as if I mean the world to him again, regardless of what he remembers. It makes me happy, but at the same time, he's so naïve. I guess that's one of the things I love about him. He always believes in something with all his heart, even if there's no logical reason behind it. And he'll do anything to fight for his beliefs too, regardless of _why_ he believes in them.

Cries of commotion snap me out of my thoughts. "What the-?!" "Look out!" "Get your weapon!" I catch a glimpse of sporadic motion ahead of me. My head shoots up to see a Neoshadow diving for us. I draw my sword, but I'm taken off-guard and unprepared to defend myself. As it closes in, Cid's lance shoots out over my head and runs the demon through. The Neoshadow instantly disappears.

"What's going on?" Riku demands loudly. "I thought the Heartless were extinct!"

Before anyone can come up with an explanation, the doors in front of us and behind us slam shut. The sound of a Corridor opening causes us to turn around frantically. An Organization member steps out of the dark gateway. His metallic grey hair hangs shaggily over his right eye and he holds a large book in one hand. He greets us with irony in his voice. "Welcome, heroes. Congratulations on making it this far."

With a sneer, he snaps and Kairi and Hayner become Neoshadows too. "What the hell?!" Yuffie cries.

"Kairi!" Riku screams and angrily turns to the Nobody. "What did you do?!"

Our friends instantly become normal again. "Illusions. Pretty fun, huh?" the cloaked young man speculates. "Wanna see some more?"

The room suddenly falls dark and glowing, yellow eyes encircle us. Everyone huddles closer together, waiting for the hidden monsters to make the first move. "We don't have to be scared!" I tell everyone. "If they're just illusions, they can't physically harm us!" As soon as I say this, one of the pairs of eyes lunges toward me and something sharp rips at my arm. I wince. "What the-?"

The rest of the creatures lunge forward and we all defend ourselves against the onslaught. In a few moments, everything vanishes and the lighting in the room returns to normal. Our eyes are still adjusting as the Nobody closes in, striking Roxas across the face with his massive book. The blonde Keybearer stumbles backward unexpectedly. I growl and sweep my blade outward toward the enemy but he warps away from the attack.

He appears again on the other side of the room. "You can still be harmed if the illusion is formed from physical material." Four Dusks appear in front of him, quickly morphing into Terrors.

Everyone tenses. "They're only Nobodies," Riku points out, holding his weapon defensively. The Terrors slink forward, snarling and wearing the same malicious grin that is still imprinted in my darkest memories. The second one locks eyes with me. It draws closer and closer, teeth bared. I can't look away. My heart starts to quiver and beat louder. My breathing picks up. "You ok, Katie?" Roxas asks, but his voice is distant. My breathing grows quicker with every second as the scar on my left arm starts throbbing. My mind is racing too fast to think straight. The pounding of my heart in my ears drives me mad and I can't take it anymore. I scream and dash forward, brandishing my sword.

The Terror pounces into the air, its claws gleaming. Its teeth aim for my throat as it drops down at me. "No!" Yuffie yells, throwing herself in front of me. She whips her foot outward and it connects with the Terror's jaw, knocking it out of the air. She leaps forward and forces multiple ninja stars down into the creature's body. It reverts to its Dusk appearance for a moment before disappearing.

The other Terrors dash forward toward their prey. Cid and Hayner leap in front of the group. "You get out of here!" Hayner calls. "We'll handle this!" Roxas hesitates but Hayner grins and shoots him a thumbs-up. Roxas nods in acceptance. Riku pulls me to my feet and runs for the door. Kairi smashes through it with a high-powered Thundaga and we flee from the room, leaving three more comrades behind.

* * *

I rub my left arm uneasily as we push forward. The contrast of the earlier commotion to the current silence leaves an unsettled feeling in my stomach. No one says anything. Everyone seems deep in thought. What they're thinking is a mystery to me. Probably the same things I am, although I'm not even sure what I'm thinking about anymore.

The hall we are walking through ends in a set of double doors. Something about them makes me feel like danger is ahead. I stop when I reach them and everyone else halts behind me. "Everything ok?" Sora wonders. I take a deep breath.

"Yeah. It's fine. Let's go." I push the doors open and we step through.

The room before us is enormous. A narrow bridge from the door hangs over a seemingly endless pit, leading to a large, square platform in the center of the room. The ceiling is very high, probably three or four stories up. Three other doors lead to the room and have walkways to the central platform. The largest door has a giant overhang above it, which seems to be accessible from some other part of the castle.

We walk over the abyss below us. Once we're in the main part of the room, Sora points toward the large doors to our right. "You think that's the way to go next?"

_"Those doors will lead you closer to the Superior," _Co informs me.

"That way is our best bet," I announce. I take a step toward it when a Corridor opens across the platform from us.

"Thought you had seen the last of us, huh?" A tall, thin Nobody emerges from the darkness, sporting a head of spiky, red hair and two teardrop tattoos under his eyes. "I'm Number VIII, got it memorized?" The man taps his head for emphasis.

We all pause, unsure what to do, but Roxas steps forward, dead-set expression on his face. "This is my fight," he declares, never wavering or glancing away from his foe.

The Nobody smirks competitively. "Well, _this'll _be fun! Hope you're stronger than last time, XIII!"

"You have no idea," he states solemnly. "And that's Roxas."

He draws Oathkeeper in one hand and then proceeds to call Oblivion with the other, dropping into an offensive stance. Everyone gapes. "Two Keyblades at once?" Sora says in disbelief. The next thing we know, a wall of fire explodes upward in front of us, blocking all view of the fight.

"What do we do?" Kairi asks worriedly.

"There's nothing we _can _do," Riku replies. "We have to keep moving."

"Besides, this is his fight," Sora adds gravely. Kairi doesn't protest anymore and we run for the door out of the room. I cringe as sounds of metal clashing resound through the air. The battle has begun.

* * *

The path before us spirals around the outside of the castle, and for the first time, we can see how high up we are. The swirling abyss of nothingness that surrounds the castle is far below us. It appears as nothing but a distant grey mass now, its shades of black and white blending together without visible separation. We hurry toward the end of the trail, climbing higher and higher along the stronghold.

Nobodies appear along the way to stop us but we never falter. We destroy them as they close in, always continuing forward. I don't even notice the effort of running or swinging my blade. My body and mind are focused on one thing: the Superior.

We arrive at another door that seems to lead back inside the castle. A cluster of powerful Nobodies with thick, massive swords appear. We jump into battle, taking each of them out one by one. No one speaks or yells out. We only fight and press on.

Once the enemies have fallen, we head back into the castle. We find ourselves on the balcony over the room that we were in a few minutes ago. The ring of fire still rages. I wonder how Roxas is doing, but the thoughts are short-lived. More Nobodies confront us, bearing the face of Co. The samurais unsheathe their swords in unison. We do the same.

A wreckage of nothingness is all that lies behind us. As the last sword falls to the ground and fades, we step through the entry to the next room. The emptiness is even more overwhelming in this room than the rest of the castle. It isn't white or grey either. The floor is a deep shade of red and veins of pale purple snake along the walls toward the exit on the other side. The room itself is full of strange structures that remind me of gravestones. Each one has a plate on the ground in front of it, marked with a different symbol. Only two of them are glowing blue. The others are lifeless and dull.

"What is this place?" Kairi whispers. No one has an answer for her. I step forward and examine the image in front of one of the stones. It appears to be an etching of a scythe like the one the Nobody at the entrance of the castle wielded. The next one bears an image of a dagger. _They're all weapons from Organization XIII, _I realize. The next one I come to is glowing blue. The image imprinted on the ground is an X formed from two Keyblades.

My eyes widen. "Roxas," I whisper. I glance to the other glowing tile. The weapons on it are strange and circular with sharp spines jutting out from all sides. As I stare at it, the blue lighting starts to grow dimmer until the ground before the stone is as lifeless as the others. I glance back toward the entrance. "He won."

We rest for a few minutes, uneasily sipping Ethers and Potions. Footsteps echo hollowly across the rounded walls of the room and Roxas emerges from the entrance. I smile in relief. "All done?"

Roxas smiles back. "All done. Well, almost. One more battle to go." He looks ahead to the opening on the other side of the room. The large numeral 'I' printed above it glows blue like Roxas' tile.

"We're almost there," I nod.

Riku tosses his empty Potion bottle aside. It clanks and rolls across the hard ground. He takes a deep breath. "Everyone ready?"

"Ready as we'll ever be," mutters Kairi.

We all stand but none of us make the first move toward the exit. "…This is it," Sora says numbly.

Riku nods, stepping up beside his friend. "This is it." Sora takes a deep breath and starts walking. Riku joins him and Kairi follows close behind. I hang back, uncertain if I'm ready for the journey to be over. But at the same time, that's all I want right now. To end this.

_"Master," _Co's voice calls. _"I cannot assist you any longer. This is your battle now. You must fight it as you see fit. And after it is over, I will be too weakened to make contact. I will simply exist as memories and nothing more."_

_ I understand, Co, _I say in my head. _Thanks for everything. I couldn't have done it without you._

_ "Farewell, Master. It has been an honor serving you."_ Its voice echoes eerily into the distance as always, this time never to return. It becomes one with the silence of the world. Roxas smiles at me and waits until I'm ready to go. I slowly start walking, building confidence with each step. As I pass under the doorway before us, I glance at the numeral above me. 'I'. It stares me in the face and sees into my soul, just like Kingdom Hearts does.

My gaze falls back to the road ahead. I inhale and let out a long, anxious breath.

_This is it._


	26. Chapter 25

A/N: Hello everyone! Welcome to the second-to-last chapter of Black Hole! I really hope you enjoy it. I spent a lot of time and thought on this last battle and even revised the scene a little from its original version for you guys. Yes, next week, the final chapter will be posted and Black Hole will come to a close. I sincerely hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it (or more...since it was frustrating to write at times...) and have a wonderful week! Hope you enjoy!

* * *

The steps lead upward to nowhere. At the peak of the castle, the journey ends in an empty, round altar underneath Kingdom Hearts. There, beneath the heart of all worlds, the Superior waits. He doesn't need to face us to know that we've arrived.

"Welcome to my dominion," he greets.

I grunt. "Seems a little empty."

"It won't be for much longer," he continues, turning toward us. His golden eyes glimmer and he wears a knowing smile.

"I wish that could be true," I reply. "But all your followers are gone. The Nobodies and the other members of the Organization…they've been destroyed."

"No matter," the Superior shrugs. "I will have other followers soon enough."

"What? You don't even care?" Sora cries. "What kind of leader are you?"

"One who will reshape the worlds anew." The man's eyes grow deeper and the light of Kingdom Hearts shifts across his face. "The ruler of anything, be it an organization or an entire world, holds all the power. Those under him exist only for the cause of the greater good."

"That's not true!" I shout. "People are people, no matter what! No one is higher than anyone else!"

"Then why are some of us given power while others are not? Aren't we the ones who bestow power on each other, by choosing our leader or by submitting to someone who is more fit to lead?"

"Maybe," I glance down at the ground. "But maybe some people don't want that power. Some people prefer to live quiet, humble lives. Lives free of adventure and danger….happy, simple lives."

"Then what are they achieving? Humans are meant to strive to better themselves. We are meant to reach for the impossible and climb to the highest heights that we can. My whole life, I sat in the castle and watched the people of that pitiful Radiant Garden each day, crawling through the streets and going about their business. And I never understood why. Why were they living? They had no ambition to rise to greatness. They weakly settled for what they already had, never looking past their own lives or even their own homes."

I'm disgusted by his apathy for his own people. "Power isn't everything, Ansem." The man flinches at the sound of his old name. "There's so much more to life than being at the top. Did you see your companions who shared the palace with you? When thrown into the outside world, they had nothing to do but kill and follow the commands of a blind ruler, a blind ruler needs to be dethroned."

"That's all they needed to do," the Nobody continues. "Sacrifice is necessary for any cause. And now I can finally return to my rightful place."

"You really think a heart will heal you?!" I scream. "If you have any shred of good in you, gaining a heart back will only fill you with guilt and pain! You've killed hundreds of innocent people, and I know we were the ones who took everything away from you, but that is wrong, no matter what the circumstances! You're the one who said sacrifice is necessary! You can't deny that rule just because you're one of the people who had to lose something!"

The Superior grins sickeningly. "Indeed. Which is precisely why I don't intend to regain the weakness that human emotion brings. What would I possibly gain if I were to become human again? My kingdom is gone and the people in it have vanished."

"What?" Riku gasps. "Then what was all the bloodshed for?! The kidnapping and the murdering?!"

"Do not be mistaken. The hearts were necessary," the Nobody continues. "You do remember how I came to be this way, don't you?" He looks directly at Roxas now. "The power of light and darkness within a human heart is incredible. When unleashed, it had enough strength to erase the hearts of an entire world. Imagine how powerful the reaction would be when hundreds of hearts are present, all unlocked at once."

I suddenly realize what's going on. "You're insane! You can't unlock all of those hearts at once! They'll destroy the entire universe!"

"Until nothing but nothingness is left. Nothing but Nobodies with no one to follow."

I draw my sword. "You're sick! All you care about is controlling people! I'm not letting you turn the universe into a hollow shell!"

"And I'm certainly not using the key to help you again either!" Sora calls angrily.

"You won't have a choice," the Superior sneers. "Not when your friends are writhing in my grasp and submission is the only way to save them."

"That trick won't work again!" Sora counters, drawing the Keyblade to fight. Roxas follows suit.

"It would not work if you had no emotions to plague you. Submit and be healed of your burden." The Superior's voice echoes through the distance as he draws two glowing, red blades and dashes toward us. Sora and Roxas run in unison toward the foe, their steps and stances aligning perfectly. When the two opposing sides meet, Roxas somersaults into the air and Sora slides under the Superior's outstretched blade, both of them going in for a lethal blow. The silver-haired Nobody twists and dodges both strikes, coming straight at Kairi, Riku, and I next.

Kairi shoots multiple Blizzard spells at the Superior's face but he disappears in thin air, reappearing moments later after the magic has passed him. He closes the distance between himself and Riku, unleashing a flurry of unpredictable attacks. Multiple strikes land and scrape up Riku's arms and face, luckily missing his vitals. I assist as quickly as I can, but the Nobody is unbelievably fast and warps before I can even attempt to hit him.

"What do you have to lose, Keybearers?" the Superior questions. Roxas and Sora both dash at their foe and attack together, but their attacks are easily blocked.

"Obliterating the whole universe just because you don't know how to live a normal life? Forget it!" Roxas yells, stabbing at the Superior's chest. The Nobody flips over the two of them, striking from behind. They are both taken off-guard and barely avoid a fatal injury. Roxas' cloak frays in the back.

"A normal life is one filled with goals and ambition. My goal is to gain more power than anyone ever has before. Isn't that a noble cause?" He says it as a statement rather than a question.

Sora brings the Keyblade down from overhead, the force reverberating through the air as it meets the Superior's dual blades. "It doesn't matter how noble the dream is! If you take the wrong path to get there, it's all for naught!"

Riku and I team up to come at the Nobody from the side, but he sees us long before we reach him. He flips backward, launching Sora away from him, and twists toward us, his blades thirsty for our blood. I leap over him, hoping to strike him in the head. Riku swerves to the side, shooting a Dark Fira. The Superior whips around, running his hand through the spell and igniting his glove with black fire, and then grabs me out of the air. The flames sear my leg and I cry out as he tosses me at Roxas as if I'm a useless doll. Kairi breaks my momentum with a Reflect before I can careen into my friend. Sora leaps back into the fray as Riku comes from behind the foe's back.

The Superior disappears at the last moment and Riku and Sora find themselves about to damage each other. They stop abruptly, nearly crashing into each other. The Nobody appears across the space, waiting for the next challenger.

"Keybearers…finish what you began. Release the captive hearts within Kingdom Hearts and change the worlds forever."

"What part of 'no' don't you understand?!" Roxas screams angrily, charging at the enemy. The Superior waits calmly for him to come.

"Careful, Roxas!" I yell, running toward my friend to help. He reaches the opponent and jabs forward. The Superior avoids it by simply swerving to the side and letting the blade slip past him. Completely within range, Roxas is defenseless as the two glowing blades head for his throat.

I throw myself at Roxas, shoving him to the ground with my shoulder. I squint my eyes shut as the Superior's weapons grind against my sword, sending sparks of plasma flying in all directions. He initiates another attack faster than I can react. Before his blades reach me, though, Kairi sends out a Thunder spell from above him. The bolt momentarily paralyzes him and gives me to time to distance myself.

The Superior shows no sign of frustration. He actually chuckles to himself as he stands straight again. "Impressive," he smirks. "Your sense of teamwork is strong. But I wonder…what will you do if no one is there to support you?" The air around us suddenly becomes strange and thick. It loses some of its transparency as nearly-invisible tendrils seem to snake around me. I frantically shake my arms, trying to bat the substance away, but my hand simply passes through it.

"What's happening?!" Riku demands.

"Katie!" Roxas yells, rushing towards me.

The Superior stands calmly as reality changes around us. "I suggest you unlock Kingdom Hearts' power soon. I can't promise that your friend will hold out for very long."

"No! Don't do it! Forget about me!" I cry, but I don't know if my voice reached them. The environment around me has completely changed to a surreal world of black and white and only the Superior and I remain. Sora, Roxas, Riku, and Kairi are nowhere to be seen.

Anger boils inside my blood and I face the Superior, determined to end him. We stand on some sort of floor, though it can't be seen, so we appear to float in the midst of shifting whirlpools of black and white. The leader of Organization XIII waits, as if expecting me to make the first move.

"I don't get it," I growl. "Why would you choose me? Sora doesn't even remember who I am. If you really wanted to force them to help you, you would've taken Riku or Kairi."

"True," the Superior admits. "But you of all people must understand my great plan."

"Are you serious?" I shout, preparing to charge the Nobody. "Think again!"

His words halt me before I assault him. "You wanted the same thing, did you not?"

I freeze, slowly standing upright again. "What are you talking about?"

"You always longed for power as I did. Back on your homeworld, you were bored with your life. You sought adventure, bigger dreams to pursue, larger challenges to overcome. When you finally got the chance to break out of your mundane routine, you pushed yourself harder and harder, training to outdo everyone, even your teacher."

Memories of mock battles with Leon run through my head. Brawls that I lost only brought disappointment and frustration. I recall the first time I beat him and the excitement and pride I felt afterwards.

The Superior continues. "And once you had done that, you reached even farther, always searching for control. When you weren't in control, you felt helpless. Even when your friends didn't know who you were, you felt the need to lead them all and take over the situation. Sitting on the sidelines and doing as you were told was never enough for you."

"I was trying to help!" I defend myself. "Someone had to do _something!_"

"Yet you brought destruction to everyone. If you had let your friend do what needed to be done, you would all be safe. But now the small group of friends that you have left is falling apart because you couldn't let go. An entire world perished and was lost to the void, all because you couldn't face the fact that you weren't in control of what was happening."

I begin to tremble as I fight back tears. His voice continues on, pounding truth into me like a hammer on wood. "You see? We really aren't that different. We aren't meant to follow. You and I, we both need power and superiority. We both want the same thing and we've both hurt others to get it."

"SHUT UP!" I scream, tears streaming down my face. "WE ARE NOT THE SAME! I DIDN'T MEAN TO HURT ANYONE!"

I sprint at the Nobody before me, sword at my side. I yell loudly and jump into the air, slicing downward to rip him apart. He calls his blades in a flash and easily parries the attack. I drop to the ground and land on my feet. I immediately leap at him again, attacking relentlessly and with no precision or dexterity. Every strike leaves me open and he could kill me at any point, but he doesn't. He simply stands and blocks my attacks, smiling and humoring me. I growl in frustration and unleash a scream to the emptiness above. Every emotion and thought inside me shatters and I fall to my hands and knees, sobbing.

The Superior glowers down at me. "Every attempt to harm me only proves my point even more. Every word of truth I speak gives me more and more power over you. You keep trying to destroy me because you want that power back. You need it. It is a lifeforce running through you." He pauses as the tears stop and I try to gather myself. "It's like that sword you wield. You rely on it every waking minute. You're ready to call on it whenever danger is near and you refuse to let it out of your sight in battle. You crave it, because you're defenseless without it. Without it, you're _powerless_. Just a child trying to see the black and white in a world of grey."

I clench my jaw tight and slowly rise to my feet as a fire ignites in the deepest part of my being. "You know what, Ansem? You're right about one thing. I am just a naïve girl who rose a weapon up in defiance of a world she didn't understand. But whether we're kings or ordinary people on the street, we all have something we fight for. And we don't always need power to overcome." I slowly relax my right hand. My sword drops to the ground. "Even when my friends and I stood on opposite sides of the battlefield, powerless to change fate or stop the oncoming war, we were still fighting for the same thing: each other. The rulers of the worlds may have other things they fight for, but that's why _we _fight! _That's _why we're here!"

I dash toward the Superior and leap through the air. The aura surrounding my sword dies out and a light as radiant as the sun explodes outward from my heart. The Superior squints through the blinding glow as I close in. Even without my trusty weapon, I feel no fear. Everyone is with me. Leon, Seifer, Kaden, and all the others back at the castle are in my heart, guiding me through the final battle.

I let out a war cry and kick Ansem squarely in the jaw. He stumbles backward and falls off the edge of the invisible platform, yelling and hurtling downward. He slowly blends into the waves of grey below until he ceases to exist. His final cry echoes emptily through the air. I watch him disappear, breathing heavily. I suddenly reel backward, feeling faint. I glance down to see both of the Superior's aerial blades jutting out of my body. One is embedded in my gut and the other pierces straight through my heart.

I watch my friend's memories desperately try to hold me together as the weapons disappear and my body attempts to patch the fatal wounds together. I weakly fall to the ground and land on my back, staring up at the sky as the scenery shifts back to the top of the Castle that Never Was. Kingdom Hearts is still intact and it watches over me as my friends scream and rush over to me.

I barely hear their voices as I drift off into the darkness and lose all consciousness.

_Katie! __Katie…_


	27. Chapter 26

A/N: Hey everyone...sorry this wasn't posted on Sunday...it completely slipped my mind...I was on Thanksgiving break and I was spending time with family and stuff. I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving too! Anyway, here it is. The final chapter of Black Hole. It's been one heck of a ride and I hope you all enjoy the ending. I haven't officially announced it until now, but after this story, I probably won't be writing any fanfiction anymore. I'm trying to move on to original stories that I can hopefully publish some day. Inspiration for a fanfic might hit me randomly one day, but after this, I probably won't be part of the community anymore. I'll still answer messages and chat with people if you wanna message me, but that's about it. Thank you all so much for the support you've given me over the years and I really hope these stories were powerful, inspirational, or even just entertaining in some way. I hope they served some purpose. Thanks again and I love all of you! Stay in touch!

* * *

My eyes drift open. I blink and try to focus my vision. The sound of ocean waves whispers gently through my ear and a wet, salty smell hangs in the air. I squint at the bright light in the room as my senses hone in to their usual strength. When I can see clearly, I sit up to find that I'm in a bed in someone's house. Cid is sprawled out in a chair in the corner, his nose stuck in a book, which is a sight I've never seen before. When he hears me moving around, he looks up. "Hey, kiddo! You're awake!"

I glance around the room. _My_ room. Confusedly, I look out the window. Sand and lush palm trees await me outside, and far in the distance, the calm ocean drifts lazily through the sunset. I stare in disbelief. "Cid…this is Destiny Islands."

"Yeah," the man scratches his head. "Roxas said you could use a trip back here. Thought all the excitement of saving the universe was getting to your head."

"Is he here? What about everyone else?"

"Yeah, they're all here. Not sure where. Kinda spread out through the islands, I think. We've kinda just been lounging around, waiting for you to wake up."

"How long was I out? …It wasn't more than a month, was it?" I ask worriedly.

Cid laughs at my comment. "Kid, I don't think anything could knock you out cold for a whole month."

"You'd be surprised," I mutter to myself.

"Well, you feeling ok? You wanna go see everyone?"

"That'd be great," I smile. I push myself out of bed and hesitate for a moment, checking if I'm okay. I'm a little light-headed and off-balanced.

"Hey, Cid?"

"Yeah?"

"…Could you help me? I don't know if I can make it out there myself."

He smirks. "Of course." He walks over and hoists my arm over his shoulder to keep me from falling over. "Guess you aren't as stubborn as I thought, huh?"

I smile to myself and we walk out the door together. We proceed slowly through the small house and open the front door to head outside. Before we can step out, I cry, "Wait!" Cid halts in surprise. I pull my shoes and socks off and leave them in the entryway. "There, now I'm ready," I state, continuing forward again. As we step outside my house, the cool, grainy sand beneath us slithers in between my toes. I stop and take a long, drawn-out inhale, letting the salty air sting at my nose and the ocean breeze sweep over me. I close my eyes and savor the moment. A seagull calls out in the distance and soars across the violet sky.

"Thanks, Cid." I pull away so I can stand on my own again. I can't stop smiling to myself as the excitement and sheer _joy _that comes with knowing I'm home again overwhelms me. I race to the nearest palm tree and begin climbing the trunk like we always did when I was a kid. I only make it about ten feet off the ground before I lose my grip and tumble down to the earth again.

"Careful!" Cid warns, but I'm already up and running down the lane. He chases after me as I head toward the shore. I spot Yuffie, Kairi, and Riku down on one of the docks. I run faster as my heart soars.

"Guys! Hey, guys!" I call, dashing through the silky sand of the island's shoreline. They turn and their faces light up when they see me. Riku is on his feet first, running to meet me, with Kairi and Yuffie right behind him. We basically collide with each other, and I don't know if Riku was intending to hug me when he reached me, but I leap and wrap my arms around him in a huge bear hug. It only lasts a moment before Kairi is hugging me and finally Yuffie.

"Guess you're ok then," Yuffie comments slyly.

"You too!" I note. "You are a ninja after all."

"And _you _are just crazy!"

I laugh. "Can't argue with you there!"

We talk for another minute or so and calm down little-by-little. A small twinge of melancholy starts to form in my heart as the sky darkens to a deep, fiery orange. The sun sinks even lower in the horizon. I stare out at the ocean longingly as night draws closer.

"Something wrong?" Kairi cocks her head in concern at me.

"Can I talk to you and Riku quick?" I ask quietly.

"Umm…sure," she answers uncertainly, glancing back at Yuffie and Cid. They also look confused but don't seem to object. Riku, Kairi, and I step off to the side and huddle together.

"I still have to give everyone's memories back," I mutter softly. "You know what that means, right?"

"Katie…you can't do that," Riku states.

"What? What's wrong?" wonders Kairi anxiously.

"Well…everyone's memories are holding me together right now, remember? Which is what saved me in the final battle. But once I give them back…they can't really do that anymore."

When she realizes what I mean, she looks down despairingly at the ground. Riku continues, "You don't have to give them back, Katie. They know that they've met you before. It'll be fine. You're still friends."

"They have a right to know, Riku," I counter. "Their memories belong to them. And besides, they helped me along this whole time. Now that they've done their job, they need to be returned."

"Katie..."

"I know it's not easy, Riku. But it's right."

The light in his eyes drains. "Yeah…I guess so."

"I'm sorry," I add before turning back to Cid and Yuffie. "OK, guys. You ready to get your memories back?"

"Whadda ya mean?" Cid wonders.

"I mean your memories of me. So you'll remember how you know me, all our adventures together, and everything that's happened since you forgot me."

"Really? You can do that?" asked Yuffie.

"Sure. Here." I remove my black gloves. "This may seem a little weird at first, but just hold tight." I place one hand on each of their arms and watch flashes of our times together shoot through my mind and disappear, returning to their owners.

They both step back in surprise, adjusting to the strange sensation. Yuffie's eyes widen in shock and then become dark and serious. She looks straight at me. "Katie…" Before I know it, I have a ninja crying into my shoulder and a Cid wrapping both of us up in his big, brawny arms.

"It's ok, Yuffie," I tell my friend, trying to console her. "I'm fine. It's ok."

She pulls away with tears in her eyes. "I just…all this time, we had no idea who you were. How could we not remember? I'm so sorry, Katie."

"It's not your fault," I remind her.

Cid shakes his head. "And now you're gonna go disappearing on us right after we got you back."

I hang my head in shame. "Sorry, guys…"

"It's not your fault!" Yuffie exclaims. "And we're gonna be right there with you when you have to give everyone else's memory back too!"

I smile sincerely. "Thanks, Yuffie."

"You planning to give everyone's memories back right now?" Cid wonders. "After you just woke up?"

"Yeah…I know it seems soon but…I can't wait anymore. This day has been haunting me for a while now and I need to get it over with. I can't spend time with everyone and act like everything's ok without thinking about saying good-bye to them."

"Well, then that's what needs to be done," Riku declares, placing a hand on my shoulder. "If you're ready, then we are."

I nod. "I am."

* * *

We head to the market where Hayner and Rai are hanging out. We greet each other happily before I explain what's going on. Then, when I'm ready, I return their memories. Their reaction is similar to Yuffie's and Cid's. Hayner gets emotional and clingy while Rai offers a gruff hug, which is emotional for him. My feelings start to get the best of me too, but I hold back any tears. The good-byes aren't over yet.

We catch Tifa at the store buying sea salt ice cream bars, which we force her to share with us. We sit out on the sand overlooking the ocean, munching on the treats. When I give Tifa's memory back, she takes it more deeply than the others. She doesn't cry but it seems to trouble her for a while and she falls silent the rest of the evening.

We still have to find Sora and Roxas. I mentally prepare myself already, since I know these last two will be the hardest. Roxas already got his memory back, but returning Sora's and saying good-bye to both of them will hurt me more than I can imagine. We can't find either of them on the main island, so we decide to look on the smaller island where we usually spend time on the weekends.

We row out across the darkening water as evening turns into early night. The splash of oars hitting water is all we hear as we head toward the island. Once we reach the docks, we spy Roxas lying in the sand and Sora off in the distance, sitting on the paopu tree, overlooking the horizon. The others tie up the boats. Riku turns to me. "Go ahead. I assume you wanna talk to him alone."

"Yeah," I nod in gratitude. "…Thank you, Riku. For everything. It's been one heck of a ride." I give him one last hug.

"Don't mention it," he says softly. His throat catches. "Damn, we're gonna miss you."

I look him straight in the eye. "Be strong, ok? Besides, you can't cry in front of your girlfriend," I tease, turning to Kairi. She wraps her arms around me.

"What an adventure," she laughs, though it comes off as a bit of a sob.

"I'll say," I grin. "Bye, Kairi."

I proceed to hug and say my farewells to everyone else: Tifa, Yuffie, Cid, Hayner, and Rai. A few tears are shed but everyone holds together for me. They always do.

All of them smile sadly at me, letting me know that it's ok to go. I clench my teeth together to hold my own tears in. "Thank you, guys, so much. I love you all. You're the best friends anyone could have." With that, I slowly turn my back to them and step off the dock into the sand.

* * *

I trod over to my childhood friend who appears to be napping on the beach. His eyes are closed and a slight smile is on his face as he takes in the nighttime air. When he hears me coming, he opens his eyes and jerks up in surprise. "Katie! You're ok!"

"Heck yeah," I grin and plop down next to him.

"You're up and kicking then?"

"Nope, no more kicking for me. I think I'm gonna take it easy."

"Sounds like a plan," he grins. He glances around me to see everyone mulling around on the docks. "The whole crew is here?"

"Yeah. Just saying final good-byes."

Roxas is startled at this. "Good-byes?"

"I'm giving everyone their memories back, Roxas. I can't keep them forever."

He sighs. "I guess not…it just sucks. Who's left?"

"Sora. I already returned everyone else's."

His mouth fixes itself into a tight line. "So that's it then, huh?"

"Yeah."

Without saying a word, he stands and holds out his hand, inviting me to do the same. I take it and rise to my feet. Before my knees have even straightened all the way, he wraps me up in a hug and holds me tightly. A tear slips out and runs down my cheek as I hug him back. Neither of us says anything for a long time. Words would fall short.

When we finally let go, we realize that both of our faces are coated in tears. I chuckle and force Roxas to smile. We both glance toward the tiny outcropping on the island where Sora sits on the paopu tree. Roxas looks me in the eye and nods firmly, his smile always encouraging and strong. "You got this," he whispers.

I quickly give him one last hug and utter a rushed "Good-bye" before dashing off toward Sora. I never look back but I hear him whisper, "Bye, Katie." I pretend I didn't hear him, even though those words mean the world to me.

* * *

My feet clomp against the warped wood of the bridge. I cross to the outcropping where Sora sits, taking in the night. The sapphire sky stretches out endlessly over the crystal waters below. When Sora hears me coming, he turns his head and exclaims, "Oh! You're up!"

"Yeah, mind if I join you?" I ask as I step onto sand once again.

"Not at all," he smiles. I hoist myself up onto the strong trunk of the crooked tree and sit beside him. "You seem fine! An injury like that would've taken _me _out, that's for sure!"

I know he's kidding around, since he stabbed himself through the heart before and came back from it, but I laugh anyway. "Probably."

"I can't believe you took out the Superior all on your own too! You're pretty awesome, you know." He gives his signature Sora grin.

I chuckle again before sliding off of the paopu tree and taking a few steps toward the ocean. I look out over the water, admiring it while I can. "Hey, Sora?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you come down here for a sec?"

"Uhh…sure." He slides off of the tree and stands a few strides behind me. "Is something wrong?"

"No. There's just…something I have to give you. Something I've been meaning to give you for a while now but it was never the right time."

"Ok," he nods, sounding confused.

My hands start to quiver but I try to hold my voice steady. I turn around. "This may seem weird at first, but try not to freak out, ok?"

"Ok." His confusion grows even more, but he forces himself to play along.

"Uhh...maybe you should close your eyes," I add. I can tell that he has no idea what's going on, but he does as he's told and shuts his eyes. I stand still for a moment, gathering my courage. Taking a deep breath, I wrap my arms around him and press my lips onto his. I immediately feel all his memories returning to him. He recoils from the contact in surprise at first, but within moments, he kisses me back, pulling me in and holding me close. Everything falls away: the sadness, the hurt, the uncertainty, the sting of the farewells. For a moment, it's only us and nothing else matters.

I have to be the first one to pull away. Sora unwillingly lets go and locks eyes with me. Sorrow and understanding run deep through the blue of his eyes. "Katie…you…you can't go."

"I'm sorry, Sora," I whisper. "It's my time."

He pulls me in again and hugs me tightly. I rest my head on his shoulder as I feel my strength slowly leaving. "You can't go yet," he pleads. "I'm not ready for you to go. I missed you so much."

"And I missed you. But I stayed strong for you, so please, Sora, be strong. For me."

"I-I'll try," he manages as he begins to cry. I attempt to hold my own weight up but I'm forced to rely mostly on him. My muscles begin to sag and I become drowsy as if ready to drift into a deep sleep. A star falls in the distance. I smile sadly.

We stand there for a few seconds, locked in each other's embrace. Suddenly, Sora pulls away slightly, glancing up toward the sky. "Katie…look!" I follow his gaze upward where another star falls through the deep blue atmosphere. A moment later, another one accompanies it. I stare toward the heavens in disbelief. It can't be…

More and more stars flash across the sky, their brilliant tails leaving a path of stardust behind. Soon, they fill the entire canvas above us, each choosing their own trail and vanishing into the distance. I stare in awe as their light illuminates the entire world, casting a milky silver glow on everything.

Slowly, they become less frequent until the sky is dark again and a single star drops across the distance, playing its final sonata. I smile softly as tears well in my eyes. Even the stars have said their good-byes and I got to see their beauty one last time.

I reach out longingly to the sky where the final star disappears over the ocean. My eyes widen as I stare straight through my hand. I examine the rest of my body as it too starts to fade away. I look up at Sora, smiling sadly. "It's time."

"No!" He runs over to me and holds me again, squeezing me harder and harder, afraid to let go. Everything becomes dream-like and starts to disappear from my mind. "Don't go, Katie! Please don't go!" he begs, burying his face in my shoulder.

"Please be strong, Sora," I remind him. "Please be strong."

"I will. I promise," he swears, sobbing. "I promise."

One last tear runs down my face as I slip through his arms and he grasps at empty air. I drift out of consciousness until all I can see or touch is a beautiful, white light. And somehow, I feel happy. "I love you" is the last thing he says. It weaves through everything else and gently flows into my heart.

I pretend I didn't hear him.


End file.
